


Perfect Imperfections

by FlamingoLady



Category: Glee
Genre: Depression, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Past Infidelity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-31
Updated: 2014-05-31
Packaged: 2018-01-27 15:31:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 39,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1715645
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlamingoLady/pseuds/FlamingoLady
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Things aren't always what they seem. What really happened the night Blaine Anderson betrayed the love of his life? Sam Evans knows, and he's had enough of watching his friend blame himself. So he calls Kurt to set in motion the reunion of not only these soul mates but best friends.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Perfect Imperfections

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own Glee, White Collar or any of it's characters. If I did there would be lots more happy gay sex and less Sam and Brittany, who I adore, turning into empty-headed idiots. Dr. Linda Pierce is my creation and I like her so I may find a use for her again in the future. I also took creative license with Blaine's parents. There are several fics that I've read with similar storylines, but this is my take on it and I haven't taken anything other than vague concepts from any one fic.
> 
> This was started before Adam had been introduced on the show so any comments are based solely on the limited info available before he actually appeared on the show. This is my first attempt at Glee fic, so please be gentle. Yes there are cliché's included here, but they fit my purposes and I went with it. 
> 
> There are a few links included to see whatever I'm talking about so if you see something underlined and want to see how I've pictured things, click it! 
> 
> I'd like to thank the wonderful Cassie who was an awesome beta and cheerleader. Any mistakes still here are all mine, so please let me know if you see something I missed! Enjoy!

_New York 1/9/2013 6:45pm  
_ “Dude, I'm about as physically aggressive as you are so you should know how serious I am when I say that if you don't listen to Blaine and let him explain what happened that I will totally come to NY and kick your ass. This is not my story to tell, but things are **not** how they seem and you will end up feeling like shit if you don’t give him this chance. Not to mention you guys are perfect for each other which is why he needs your support so fucking much, okay?”

Kurt was stunned by Sam’s outburst. Normally he was so calm and quiet, but that seemed to make things feel more serious when he did lose it. It also meant that there was substance and emotion behind it and that is what gave him pause. “Okay Sam. I was already coming in this weekend to see my dad, so I will make sure to talk to Blaine while I’m in. Do I even get a clue about what’s going on and how **you** know about it but I don’t?”

“No, like I said it’s not my place to tell you what’s going on. Just remember who he is and listen to him with an open mind. I know you're hurt, but he is too and you can help each other heal. As for how I know? Well, since you left, he and I have gotten pretty close and he’s pretty much my best friend. I’d like to think I’m his too, but I know that'll always be you. I listen to him when he talks and I'm here with him so I can see a lot of things you probably can’t over the phone or Skype. Plus, you were really busy and weren't even taking his calls for a while before Thanksgiving.”

“That’s not fair, Sam! I’m in another fucking state and I’m trying to deal with a new place to live, a new job that I love but stresses me the fuck out more than I like to admit, I’m getting ready to start college that I can barely afford and I’m living with Rachel Fucking Berry! Do you **really** think that I have it so easy here? I’m tired all the time, I’m lonely and I miss all of you guys so damn much but this is my dream and I feel guilty for wanting to be home so bad. Can’t you understand that?”

Sam was quiet for a while before he asked quietly, “Did you ever try to say any of that to Blaine?” Sam stopped speaking at the sound of Kurt’s sobbing on the other end of the call. This was certainly not the reaction he had expected from one of the strongest and most determined people he had ever met. He had honestly expected Kurt to be stubborn about the issue and possibly even hang up on him after making several snarky and biting comments but crying was not even in the top ten things he thought might come from this call. “Kurt? I know what it’s like to miss your friends and your family. Believe me, I’m someone who knows all about that first hand, but I also know that you have to let your friends help you through this stuff or it’ll start to drive you nuts. Is there anything I can do? Anything at all to help you because I feel really crappy making you cry when I wasn't trying to do anything more than get you to see what was going on from somebody not so close to the situation.”

Kurt grabbed the ever present box of tissues that had taken up residence beside his bed since the fight with Blaine. He wiped the tears from his face and gave a tiny smile that Sam wouldn't see but made Kurt feel better and then replied, “Thanks Sam. You’re a really good friend and I don’t think I've noticed that before. I'm sad to say that must say something bad about what kind of friend I’ve been. I appreciate your offer and I know that I will be taking you up on it soon, but I have to think about some things first. I've gotten so caught up in the craziness that is my life lately that I haven’t really seen what was going on with the things that are the most important to me. I'm not going to ask about what is going on with him, but I have to ask if Blaine is okay. Just your insistence that I talk to him makes me worry and I know how emotional we both are and now that scares me to think what might be happening with him while I've been in this ridiculous bubble in NY. Please, can you tell me that much?”

Sam thought for a few minutes about what he could or should say. Would he be betraying his friend’s trust in him by saying anything or could he give just a little update without revealing anything and ease another friend’s mind about what was going on. “Listen, I know you’re worried,” he started off slowly. “I’m not gonna say much other than what I already did. Blaine is hurting and he really needs you to listen to him. You might have to push a little to get him to talk about the real issue, but he really wants to talk to you about what’s going on with him. You might get pissed off at some of the things he has to say, but I think if you tell him what you told me before that he'll understand a little better and I know that you both will feel better. Just… Do me a favor. Please. I really need you to promise that you’ll hear him out and not walk out on him, okay? He really needs that.”

“I promise Sam. I’m coming in on Friday night and I’m going to try and set something up with Blaine for Saturday afternoon. Today is Wednesday; do you think he would be home for me to text him now? I’d rather not talk to him because I know he'd be able to tell I've been crying.”

Releasing a relieved sigh, Sam replied, “Yeah, he should be at home. And I think texting would be good because I’d hate to get my ass kicked for making you cry.”

Laughing, Kurt said, “I really appreciate this Sam. I think I needed a little outside intervention to get me to pull my head out of my ass and do this. I kinda wish I was there because I feel the need to hug you right now.”

“Hey man, I know what it’s like to be too far away to see what’s really happening. That’s what happened with me and Mercedes but I don’t want to see that happen with you and Blaine. How about I pass on the phone hug to him tomorrow when I see him at school? Sound good?”

“That sounds perfect Sam. Thanks again. I’ll let you know about my little plans that I might need help with if you don’t mind. It won’t be much.”

“Don’t worry about it. If it helps get Blaine back to normal and you two talking again, I’ll do whatever it takes.”

“Great! I’ll probably text or email you details later if that’s okay?”

“Sure, do you have my email address? It’s MagicSam@gmail.com.”

“No! Like Magic Mike??”

“Yeah, I set it up when I was still stripping and just never got around to changing it. I kinda like it though.”

“It suits you,” Kurt giggled. “Well, I’m going to get off of here and text Blaine before it gets too late. Thanks again Sam.”

“No problem, Kurt. Just let me know what you need me to do and I’ll get it done. Talk to you later.”

Kurt stared down at the screen of his phone for several minutes before taking a deep breath and typed in a quick text.

**To Blaine: (7:35)  
** _Just got a call from Sam and was thinking about you. How are you?_

**To Kurt: (7:38)**  
 _Doing okay. Happy hearing from you! :)_

__**To Blaine: (7:39)  
** _:) I was wondering something_

__**To Kurt: (7:39)**  
 _What were you wondering?_

__**To Blaine: (7:41)**  
 _Are you doing anything this Saturday afternoon?_

__**To Kurt: (7:45)**  
 _Nope, not unless you count homework. But that will probably get pushed off until Sunday as usual. ;) Why?_

__**To Blaine: (7:51)  
** _I’m going to be in Lima to see dad and I was wondering if we could get together? We really need to talk._

__**To Kurt: (7:52)**  
 _Of course! When? Where? And if you don’t mind me asking, talk about what?_

__**To Blaine: (7:56)  
** _I just thought it was time we talked things out. We’ve been ignoring them for too long._  
And we can meet when and where you want. Since it will be a pretty intense conversation.  
Probably. 

__**To Kurt: (8:03)**  
 _Yeah, we have. I’m glad you’re going to let me explain._  
I really need to. For both of us.  
Oh yeah! How about my house at noon. I can make lunch.  
As usual, the parentals are nowhere to be found. 

__**To Blaine: (8:05)  
** _That sounds good. I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to be ready for this.  
I’m kind of nervous to be honest._

__**To Kurt: (8:08)**  
 _Me too. But there are things I really need to tell you.  
I hope you won’t hate me. :(_

__**To Blaine: (8:15)  
** _No matter how mad I get at you, I could NEVER hate you. xo_

__**To Kurt: (8:18)**  
 _:D I know you probably don’t want to hear this, but I love you SO much!_

__**To Blaine: (8:22)  
** _I love you too. You’re still my best friend._

__**To Kurt: (8:25)**  
 _You’re still mine too._

__**To Blaine: (8:29)  
** _I know! Sam told me. :p_

__**To Kurt: (8:29)**  
 _o_O_

__**To Blaine: (8:34)  
** _*whispers* He sounded jealous. Don’t tell!_

__**To Kurt: (8:39)**  
 _Oh! LOL  
Btw, are you gonna yell at me on Saturday?_

__**To Blaine: (8:43)  
** _I don’t know, but I don’t think so. I think I’m finally ready to just listen._

__**To Kurt: (8:45)**  
 _Okay. Thank you. XOXO_

__**To Blaine: (8:46)  
** _You’re welcome. xo_  
Gotta run. I have one more chapter to read before class tomorrow morning.  
See you Saturday? 

__**To Kurt: (8:48)**  
 _Okay, I have to finish up my essay for history too._  
Can’t wait to see you this weekend! :D  
XOXOXO 

__**To Blaine: (8:51)  
** _Me either. I’ve really missed this._  
I’ve really missed you.  
Night!  
xoxoxoxo 

__**To Kurt: (8:52)**  
 _Night! xoxoxoxoxo_

__**To Sam: (9:01)**  
 _I don’t know what you did, but I think I owe you coffee.  
And maybe a car. LOL!_

__**To Blaine: (9:05)  
** _???_

__**To Sam: (9:07)**  
 _I’ll explain tomorrow.  
But thanks!_

__**To Blaine: (9:08)  
** _K cu@schl_

__**To Sam: (9:09)**  
 _Really? You can’t type out words?_

__**To Blaine: (9:11)  
** _Yes I can. Bite me. How was that?  
:-p_

__**To Sam: (9:12)**  
 _Much better! LOL!  
Night!_

__**~KB~KB~KB~  
**  
Blaine walked into school Thursday morning carrying two cups of coffee and wearing the first genuine smile that Sam had seen on his face in months. His heart felt a little lighter and he knew that he had done the right thing by calling Kurt. “Hey Blaine! What’s up with the double-dose of caffeine this morning?”

Laughing at his friend’s teasing, Blaine handed him a cup saying, “Grande iced caramel mocha with extra whipped cream. For whatever it was you said to Kurt to make him text me last night.”

Taking a long drink of the sweet treat his friend had offered, Sam debated what to say about his call to NY last night. “Listen, I really didn’t say that much. Mostly threatened to kick his ass if he didn’t listen to you because you needed to explain and he would feel like crap if he didn’t let you. I think that he was already thinking about it because he really didn’t take a lot of convincing and that really surprised me. I sorta got the impression that he just maybe needed a push or something. And I know for a fact that you really need to talk to someone other than me about what happened that night.”

With a pensive look and a quick sip from his coffee, “Well, whatever it was that convinced him, I’ll take it. I can’t wait to see him on Saturday but I’m so damned scared to tell him what really happened Sam.” Looking quickly at his friend’s compassionate face, he continued, “What if he hates me? What if he thinks I’m damaged goods or something like that? I don’t know if I could take that coming from Kurt.”

Sam quickly pulled Blaine into a hug before he started crying which he knew was always a possibility when he talked about “That night.” He knew just the thing to take the other boy’s mind off his problems for a few minutes at least. Leaning in closer, he whispered into Blaine’s ear, “Just so you know, I’m passing along this hug from Kurt. And you might want to check out your locker too.”

After giving a small nod of thanks to the blond, Blaine turned his back and opened his locker to find a surprise in the form of a small yet beautiful bouquet of flowers. There was a note attached and when he looked back, Sam just pointed to the note. Blaine pulled the card from the flowers and smiled while reading words he knew were from Kurt, but was written in Sam’s shaky handwriting.

_Blaine,  
I know that we have been through a lot together, both good and bad, but I want us to try and look past those things and have a fresh start. I know you want more, but I’m just not ready for more than friendship yet, but that doesn’t mean that I won’t be in the future and it definitely doesn’t mean that I don’t still love you more than I probably should. You know how I am with symbolic gestures, so here is the first in our new beginning. This bouquet has six different flowers in it and they all mean something very special. Pay close attention, please because there are a few you may not recognize. _

_First, there are two yellow roses and I am using them for two different meanings so one is for apology (both yours and mine) and the other is for friendship. Lavender is for devotion. Even when we were just friends, we have always been devoted to each other. Now, the rest you may not recognize so I’ll describe them as well as define them. There should be a medium-sized bright pink flower that sort of looks like a snowball. That is a peony and it means bravery because you have always been the bravest person I have known, even when you don’t think that you are. Next is a white flower with a lemon yellow center called plumeria. This one is for new beginnings. The last two are both kind of star shaped and the blue one that looks like a puffy star is a forget-me-not. Other than the obvious, I included that one because it means true love. No matter what happens, I will always love you and you will always be my best friend because you know and understand me better than anyone other than my father. I think you should possibly get a medal for that instead of a flower, but maybe later. :) The last flower is a reminder of when we first met and the texts you kept sending me. It’s actually an herb called borage and looks like pink stars. Simply put, it means courage._

_Like I said before, I’m not trying to give false hopes that we will go right back to where we were and be totally in love and together, but I am tired of having a million little things I want to tell you in a week and feeling guilty for wanting to call or text you about them. I miss you being there and I miss being there for you. I’m really glad that you have good friends like Sam because at least I know you're not alone and that was something that worried me more than anything else when I left._

_I’m not sure how much I will be around until I get to town so you might not hear from me until we see each other on Saturday. I have classes until three and go into work for a few hours to get everything cleared up before I leave for my long weekend and then have to pack and have classes tomorrow until noon then I have to be at the train station at 2:30. I don’t know how I’m going to do it because I read the times wrong for the train and I don’t get in until 5AM. Finn is really pissed, but he’s going to pick me up in Toledo then drive me home to sleep for a few hours before we get together. Luckily I have my phone and laptop so I will be able to have things to do and not go completely nuts even though there is no wifi, but I will probably be kind of tired when I see you. I’m trying to get into the quiet car so I don’t have to deal with tons of super loud people for 14 hours since I have a paper to work on, so I won’t be able to talk, but feel free to text me to distract from the trip if you feel like it. I’m sure I’ll need it!_

_Take care of yourself and I’ll see you soon, Kurt_

A quiet sob escaped from Blaine’s lips before he threw himself at Sam while muttering, “Thank you. Thank you so much! You have no idea how much this means to me!”

Sam returned the hug while chuckling. “That was kinda the reaction I was expecting so I’m glad I wasn't disappointed. Are you gonna be okay until Saturday? I know your parents are out of town, but I doubt that Burt would mind you staying over tonight. When are they supposed to get back, do you know?”

Blaine steps back and gives Sam a small grin, “Thanks, I think I’d like that. I hate being in that huge house alone. I’m not sure when mom and dad are coming back, but I know that it won’t be until at least next weekend. They had some kind of fund-raiser this weekend for his law firm and then mom was planning on doing more shopping than anyone would ever need to do. Even Kurt!” Sharing a laugh with Sam, he continued, “I would feel better if you would check with Burt about me coming over though. I don’t want to just spring it on him when I show up at the dinner table.”

“Dude, you know he thinks you’re practically family! I think he was almost as upset about you and Kurt breaking up as the two of you were. Why else would he have taken you to NY for Christmas as Kurt’s gift? I will definitely call him at lunch. We should really run though. It’s almost time for homeroom and we’re gonna be late!”

Both boys ran in opposite directions and into their classroom just as the bell was ringing. Artie and Wade looked up at Blaine’s abrupt entrance and give him smiles. Blaine returned them and took his seat while catching his breath and realized that he was still holding the little bouquet from Kurt. “This should be interesting,” he thought to himself.

In a lightly teasing voice, Artie whispered, “Oooo! Look who got flowers! Something you need to share with the class?”

Stifling a giggle, Blaine looked at Artie with a straight face before quickly sticking his tongue out at him and crossing his eyes. He looked all of four years old and was quite proud of the loud guffaw that came from his unsuspecting friend causing the teacher to pause in taking roll and give a dirty look to silence him. Sheepishly looking over, he mouthed, “Sorry!” before turning back around and listened to the morning announcements. As the bell rang announcing their release to first period, Blaine hung back and gave a small smile to Wade and Artie before giving a stage whisper, “They are from Kurt.”

Unique made her first appearance of the morning in the form of a loud squeal before grabbing Blaine in a quick but sincere hug. “I’m **so** happy for you! Does this mean that you are back together?”

Artie chimed in quickly, “Yeah, because that would be fantastic! You guys were great together.” They continued to chat while making their way to history which they all shared while Blaine explained what was going on. Both of the other boys shared in his excitement as well as worried about their friend and what might happen if things on Saturday didn’t work out as well as everyone hoped they would. Everyone in Glee had noticed Blaine’s decline since his break-up with Kurt, but no one knew what to do to help. They would all be thrilled to see the two back together because as a couple, Blaine and Kurt gave everyone hope. Against all odds, they made things work.

 **~KB~KB~KB~  
**  
“RACHEL! Come on, we’re going to be late again!”

Racing out of the bathroom putting on her coat, Rachel ran past Kurt and grabbed her messenger bag and then his hand and pulled her roommate out the door with her. “We won’t be late, Kurt. I just had to brush my teeth. We will be at the subway in two minutes and then at NYADA in forty giving us fifteen to grab coffee and head to the torture chamber.”

Laughing at her dramatics, Kurt chided, “You really must give it a rest. Just because Ms July doesn’t think you’re a prima donna doesn’t mean that her dance class is torture. I’m the one starting a semester behind, but you don’t hear me complaining do you?”

Snorting in a very unladylike fashion, Rachel responded, “No, I don’t need to hear you because I can see the disgust on your face every time we go there. Besides, she loves you since you complimented her on her abs the first time you met her. Suck up. You will get the hang of everything once you get in the swing of things. If you need help, you’ve got me and Brody. You could also have Adam if you really wanted him to help.” 

Glaring at her waggling eyebrows, Kurt decided to shock her for a bit of silence on the ride to school. “I’ll have you know that I only went out with Adam once for coffee and he was adorable, but there was no chemistry. I think he reminded me a little too much of a gay male version of Brittany since he’s always smiling and has a really quirky sense of humor. But at least he doesn’t call me a dolphin or a unicorn. By the way, did I tell you that I’ve got a date with Blaine on Saturday? We’re finally going to sit down and talk about what’s going on with us instead of ignoring all of the difficult issues we have and doing the whole awkward small talk thing we have been.”

Wide-eyed, Rachel stared at Kurt as they sat down on the subway before screeching at him, “WHAT??? When did this happen and why didn’t you tell me about it? Are you getting back together? Do you still love him? Does he still love you? What are you going to do? Does your dad know?”

So much for the quiet, he thought while placing a silencing finger over her lips. He started talking in an exaggeratedly slow pace, “Rachel, listen to me carefully. Take a breath before you pass out please?” Seeing the quick nod, he removed his finger and went on, “Now in order, last night. You were out until late with your boy-toy. Not yet but I reserve the right to change that answer at a later date. Yes. Yes. We are having lunch and talking about what happened and what is going on with us. And lastly, not yet but I have a feeling he will be happy about it. Any more questions you’d like to throw my way this morning?”

A pensive look remained on Rachel’s face the rest of the train ride to school. While they walked to get their morning coffee, Kurt finally broke the silence asking, “Did I break you? You haven’t spoken in almost fifteen minutes and outside of class and making out with my brother or your boy-toy that is a record.”

Giving him a dirty look, she replied, “Would you **please** stop calling Brody my boy-toy! As to your other question, no you did not break me, I was just thinking. I’m glad that you are going to finally talk to Blaine. I think it would make things better between the two of you no matter where you decide to go with the relationship. Now that we’ve all had time to think things over, don’t you think it odd that Blaine would actually cheat on you when he go so upset over your text messages to Chandler? It never sat right with me how he could have been so upset about texts then he went out and actually slept with someone else.”

“I know, I think that’s why it hurt so badly. He had gotten so pissed off at me to the point of almost breaking up but then he did what he did. I’m just finally ready to sit down with him and find out what happened. I’m kind of worried though.” Giving her a quick, side-eyed glance, “Rachel, he said he hoped that I wouldn’t hate him when I found out what happened. Sam said that it wasn’t what it seemed and if I didn’t give him the chance to explain I would feel like shit later. What could that all mean?”

Taking a quick sip of her coffee while giving him a confused look, “Sam?”

“Oh yeah, that’s how this all started. Sam called me last night, totally out of the blue and threatened to kick my ass if I didn’t actually let Blaine explain himself to me. You know I have wanted to do that for a while now, but I think I just needed that extra little shove to get me to do it while I’m home this weekend.”

Pulling him into a quick, one-armed hug, she said, “I really don’t know, Kurt. I do know that you two are beautiful together and not just because you are both so handsome. You two fit together like puzzle pieces. That’s why I always thought it was so cute that the first song he ever sang for you was Teenage Dream. I’m a little worried about what it might mean after hearing what Sam said and that he was being all protective like he gets when he’s upset too. Remember when he and the other Glee guys threatened Karofsky for you?”

“Yeah, I really appreciated that but now that I know what was going on, I almost feel bad. Although he is in a much better place now. Who would have **ever** expected him and **Sebastian** of all people to get together?”

After almost snorting coffee out of her nose, Rachel finally recovered before saying, “Sebastian Smythe turned out to be a decent person, but is he really dating David Karofsky?”

Giving her a satisfied smirk, Kurt replied, “Yes he is. I reintroduced them the last time we ran into each other at Scandals just before leaving for New York and they really seemed to hit it off. Surprisingly, I’m emailing regularly with both of them and they seem to be very happy and keeping each other’s inner bully in check. I was happy to hear that since I know that the Warblers were trying to get Blaine to come back for a while after we broke up and they sent Sebastian to talk to him about it originally.”

Coming to the door of the dance class, Rachel paused and said, “I’m glad that things are working out for them both and that it means other people aren’t getting pulled into their craziness. Now, we need to get ready for Cassie.”

 **~KB~KB~KB~  
**  
Blaine did end up staying over with Sam at the Hummel residence and he was happy that everyone seemed alright with him being there. Burt gave him a wink when he casually mentioned hearing from Kurt that they were getting together on Saturday, causing a deep blush to quickly color his cheeks. Carole got a huge smile at this news and Finn of course congratulated him before continuing to shovel food into his mouth. Blaine felt the need to explain that they weren’t really getting back together. “We’re just getting together to talk things out so we can get past all of the problems we’ve had and move on. We are both missing having our best friend around, and it may lead us back to where we were before, but we really don’t know for sure yet. I’m really glad that you guys approve though. It really means a lot to me to know that you’re rooting for us.”

Burt gave him a big smile before patting his shoulder and said, “Blaine, you’re like another son to me and I would be ecstatic if you guys got back together. I have to say though, I’m happier to hear that you two are finally gonna talk things out than I would have been to hear that you were just getting back together while ignoring the problems. I know from past experience that keeping secrets or ignoring problems can cause nothing but pain and sorrow. I know my son. Now that he’s ready to stop being stubborn and listen to you, you just need to be honest and tell him everything so that you two can move on. Keeping things bottled up will be the first thing to end a relationship because something always manages to come out at the exact wrong time. Also know that even if you and Kurt don’t get back together that you will still be a part of this family. Got that?”

Blaine could feel a lump in his throat and tears threatened at the thought of this being his family. “Yes sir,” he said with a smile and a small salute. He added quietly so that only Carole and Sam heard him, “I wish this really was my family.”

Carole leaned over and gave Blaine a quick one-armed squeeze before asking if he would help her clear off the leftovers when they were finished. He gave her an odd look, but smiled and said he would. When everyone else had left to watch TV or play video games, Carole came over to Blaine and took his hand and led him over to the table to sit down again. He was giving her a very confused look, but she just smiled and kissed his cheek before pulling him into a tight hug. “Just so you know I wish you were ours too.” Hearing those words broke down the few remaining walls that Blaine had and suddenly he was quietly sobbing on her shoulder. This woman, his ex-boyfriend’s step-mother, had just casually yet sincerely said more caring words to him than his own mother had in years. One of the things that had drawn him to Kurt was his devotion to his family but once he met them, he understood something he never had before. This was a real family. It wasn’t a cardboard cutout image of one like his own, but an honest to goodness, real American family who cared for each other and helped each member get through any hard times they had. He was also starting to realize that he was now a part of this family whether he was with Kurt or not and that was a little overwhelming for him. He had felt so very lonely and inadequate as a son for so very long that having everyone casually telling him that he was family made his heart burst with joy. He was finally part of something again and it felt wonderful.

Carole realized what must be going on within Blaine’s mind and just let him have his cry. One thing women knew better than most men was how much better a good cry could make you feel. It was like the tears were rain washing away your troubles. She had seen how often this boy was left alone and it made her sad to think of parents who could treat their own child as if they weren’t even there. She continued to hold him close, whispering soothing words to him until he was all cried out and then she sat him down again and got him a cold glass of water to soothe his throat. “I want you to know that I might not understand exactly what you’re going through, but if there is ever anything you need to talk about, I want you to come to me or to Burt. I know you’re good at taking care of yourself, but you’re still a boy and you shouldn’t have to do that yet. Will you do that for me?”

Wiping his face with the damp paper towel that was handed to him, Blaine smiled up at Carole and nodded. “There are a few things I would really like to talk about with an adult, but I need to talk to Kurt first. Is that alright? Can I come back to you maybe next week or something like that?”

Sitting beside him, she grabbed the boy’s hands and looked him directly in the eyes before answering, “You can come to us anytime you want to, sweetheart. I know that there is something that you’ve been holding on to for a long time and I completely understand that you need to tell Kurt first but when you’re ready, just come to us. We’ll listen and do whatever you need to help you get through whatever it is.” After a quiet thank you, she gave him one more kiss on the cheek and then pulled him up and led him back to the kitchen where they spent the next twenty minutes in comfortable conversation while putting away leftovers and loading up the dishwasher. Swatting his behind like she did Finn’s, she told him to go have fun for the rest of the night before he came over and gave her another tight hug and thank you. On his way up to Sam’s room, he passed Finn in the hall and said quietly, “You are really lucky to have a mom like Carole.”

Giving him a slightly perplexed look, Finn replied enthusiastically, “Yeah, she’s the greatest! I’ll be nice and share if you want?”

Laughing at his antics, Blaine nodded at that and went to find Sam. Plopping down on the bed beside his friend, he gave him a big smile. Sam returned the gesture and asked quietly, “Did tonight help you feel any better? You look like you’re feeling better.”

“Yeah, tonight was exactly what I needed. Burt and Carole always make me feel better and like I matter. Glee does that too, but not in the same way. Do you know what I mean? Am I sounding like an idiot?” 

Laughing at Blaine’s expression, Sam interrupted before he could get going on a crazy rant, “I know exactly what you mean and you don’t sound like an idiot. They make me feel the same way. Like you’re family and cared about even though you’re not technically a part of the family. It’s really a nice feeling.” Smiling over at Blaine, he continued, “I’m glad that you came over tonight. You spend too much time alone. Are you coming over tomorrow night too?”

Shaking his head, “No, Kurt will be back and I don’t want to make him uncomfortable being here when he gets home. We’re going to be meeting at noon at my place and I need to get everything ready. I’m making lunch so I have to grocery shop and clean and all of that kind of stuff. Besides, I’ll probably be texting Kurt while he’s on his train,” he added quietly with a shy smile.

Pulling Blaine close under his arm while wrapping his arm around him, Sam said, “I’m happy for you, dude. I know you guys have been texting every once in a while but this seems like its more back to normal. You are gonna tell him the truth about Eli and what happened, right? You need to talk to somebody besides me and I have a feeling that Kurt is gonna have the same kinda reaction that I did. Just give him a chance, okay?”

“I hope you’re right. I’m definitely going to tell him what happened. I know you want to have me talk to someone else too, but I don’t think I can do that. Its gonna be hard enough telling Kurt, but I did tell Carole that I wanted to talk to an adult about some stuff so I might talk to her or Burt depending on how Kurt reacts.”

“Okay dude. I’ll let it go for now since you’re gonna talk to Kurt. Do you need any help getting ready for Saturday? I don’t mind helping.”

Cuddling closer to the blonde boy, Blaine smiled and said, “Thanks Sammy but I’m keeping things simple. I’m making lasagna and garlic bread and pretty much making a pillow fort in the living room in front of the fireplace for us to talk after we eat. I seriously need to clean my bedroom because it looks like a paper bomb went off in there after that stupid week of essays we had last week! It shouldn’t take too long though. Most of the stuff just goes in the trash. And of course, like any other healthy seventeen-year-old male,” both boys looked at each other and laughed while saying in unison, “Hide the porn!”

Pulling back far enough to look inquiringly into Sam’s eyes, “Are you sure you’re not gay? Because you are awfully good at the cuddling thing for a guy.”

Ruffling Blaine’s hair slightly, Sam smirked and replied, “I guess it’s from having my little brother and sister. They love to cuddle.”

“Sure, we’ll say that’s the reason,” Blaine giggled as he moved down to lay on the pillow at the top of the sleeping bag he was using for a bed. Seconds later he was hit in the face with a flying stuffed animal.

 **~KB~KB~KB~  
**  
“Rach, are you sure you don’t want to come with me? It’s only fourteen hours on a crowded train. With no wifi.”

Shaking her head and smiling at her roommate, she said quickly, “No, Kurt. I don’t want to spend that long on a train with too many people and not enough to do to make me not go crazy. I love you, but sadly not that much. Besides, I have a date with Brody and an empty apartment. I plan to take full advantage of the situation.”

Smirking back at her, Kurt scolded, “Do I need to lock my bedroom? There will be no hetero-love in my room! I will lock it.”

Looking genuinely shocked that he would even suggest that, Rachel stuttered, “What? Why would you think we would do that in your room? I only meant that we could walk around naked or be loud when we’re fooling around…”

Before she could get any farther, Kurt stuck his fingers in his ears and started screaming, “Lalalalalalalala… I do **not** want to hear about what you plan to do to each other while I’m gone. I was joking but I can see that now you’re trying to traumatize me before I can catch my train home. Why would you do that Rachel? You said that you loved me but I don’t believe you anymore! Now I’m going to have gross hetero-sex images of my best friend burned into my brain the whole fourteen hours I’m stuck on that train and it is all your fault Rachel Berry!”

Laughing so hard that she almost fell off of the sofa, Rachel gasped out her apologies between giggles. “I’m sorry, Kurt. I don’t know what I was thinking. Here let me paint a better picture for you. Think of a certain someone with a sexy English accent doing a naughty striptease for you while singing the song you heard him singing when you met.”

He tried to glare at the hysterical girl before finally losing it and joining her in the loud laughter that filled their apartment, he snorted, “I really do hate you now. I will **never** get that ridiculous sight out of my head. I think I need to bleach my brain now! How could someone so good-looking be so fucking clueless? I mean really? Who other than Mr. Schue would think that an acoustic version of Baby Got Back would be even remotely sexy? Even if he does have one of the best asses I’ve ever seen.”

Holding onto each other to avoid tumbling to the floor, neither one noticed when Brody came in. He was getting very used to seeing this kind of thing when he came over to his girlfriend’s apartment. He still had to ask, “What started it this time guys?”

Between the two, they managed to get out enough words to help Brody understand, “Adam.” “Stripping.” “Baby Got…” Then they both dissolved back into giggles and now Brody was joining them. He had heard about how Kurt and the other man had met while he was singing a “stripped down version” of a ridiculous rap song from the 1980’s. “Okay children, I get the idea. Unfortunately, we have to get going if we’re going to get Kurt to the train station in time for his train. It leaves at 3:45, right?”

Nodding, Kurt moved back to his bedroom to grab his suitcase, messenger bag and laptop case. He had a paper due next Friday for his Theatre History class and he planned to get that out of the way along with most of the other homework he still had while stuck on the train. He only hoped that he would be able to get into the quiet car so he wouldn’t be disturbed. “Okay, I’m ready. We’re taking a cab, right? I can’t see these bags working well on the subway.”

“Actually, I have my car outside. I don’t use it much in the city, but I thought this would be a nice opportunity to take it out for a little spin, plus it saves the cab fare.”

Leaning in to kiss her boyfriend, Rachel beams, “Thank you for being so thoughtful. Let’s go!”

**~KB~KB~KB~**

**To Blaine: (3:51pm)  
** _Would it be wrong to scream at a woman with a child throwing a tantrum in the QUIET CAR?  
Because I’m about to!_

__**To Kurt: (3:59pm)**  
 _I don’t think so, but you would be breaking the quiet car rules too if you screamed at her._

__**To Blaine: (4:02pm)  
** _Damn you and your sensible nature._  
I didn’t need to anyway. A conductor(?) just asked her to go to another car.  
Happy Kurt is happy again. 

__**To Kurt: (4:10pm)**  
 _That’s good to hear! I like Happy!Kurt! :)_

__**To Blaine: (4:15pm)  
** _You’ve been reading Harry Potter fanfiction again, haven’t you?_

__**To Kurt: (4:16pm)**  
 _Why do you say that? *shifty eyes*_

__**To Blaine: (4:19pm)**  
 _Because you were using the ! to describe moods like they do in fanfic.  
Come on, you know you were! Who was it this time? Harry and Draco or Harry and Snape?_

__**To Kurt: (4:23pm)  
** _Fine, I was reading a little. And it was Harry/Snape.  
And it was really good too, so :-p_

__**To Blaine: (4:25pm)  
** _*smh* I’m talking to a toddler!  
A toddler who likes Snarry porn!_

__**To Kurt: (4:28pm)**  
 _Hey! It wasn’t porn!_  
Not really.  
Besides, it’s not like I have a lot of options these days.  
Other than left or right and Snarry or Drarry. :-p 

__**To Blaine: (4:35pm)  
** _Sorry, they just came around for tickets._  
I can’t believe you are reading Potter Porn!  
*snickers* I know what you mean about options though.  
If I remember correctly, I preferred right and Snarry.  
Always did like my men dark and greasy.  
Or crunchy since that’s what the gel feels like! 

__**To Kurt: (4:42 pm)**  
 _I think you broke me._  
I’m not exactly sure what to say back to that other than to defend myself.  
I prefer fiction to pictures/movies because I have a very vivid imagination.  
I prefer right as well but left occasionally makes a decent bit of variety.  
Alan Rickman is one of the sexiest men alive, but then again so is Tom Felton.  
You are the sexiest ever though.  
MY HAIR IS NOT GREASY! OR CRUNCHY! 

__**To Blaine: (4:52pm)  
** _Oh NO! I didn’t mean to break you!_  
You don’t need to defend yourself, I was just teasing.  
I remember your vivid imagination and have always loved it.  
They do say variety is the spice of life. Although toys or kink can be interesting too. ;)  
Totally agree on both Rickman and Felton.  
No I’m not, but thank you for the sentiment.  
I know it’s not greasy but it is a little crunchy. 

__**To Kurt: (4:55pm)**  
 _o_O_  
I think we need to discuss this more.  
What is this kink you speak of? 

__**To Blaine: (4:56pm)  
** _There are many kinks, just as many if not more than ice cream flavors._  
As for discussing more? Nope, not gonna happen. Not now.  
You may be alone in your lovely bedroom with the big fluffy bed, but I am in a train car.  
Surrounded by way too many people to make this conversation comfortable.  
And no way to “resolve” the issue. 

__**To Kurt: (4:58pm)**  
 _Awww! *pouts*_  
I’m sorry, didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.  
Thought it was just fun. :( 

__**To Blaine: (4:59pm)  
** _I wasn’t THAT kind of uncomfortable, silly!_  
I meant the kind of uncomfortable that comes from too tight skinny jeans over an erection.  
:-p 

__**To Kurt: (5:02pm)**  
 _Oh okay. :D  
Am I bad because I’m now even more interested in having that conversation?_

__**To Blaine: (5:02pm)  
** _You are evil.  
But not bad._

__**~KB~KB~KB~  
** _  
_The afternoon and evening continued with numerous flirty and silly texts passed between the two boys as well as others from Rachel, Mercedes, Sam and Finn. He had brought a small cooler bag filled with drinks and snacks for his long trip so had a soda and sandwich around 8:30 and had been working on his paper on and off the entire time between texts. Kurt was starting to get very tired around 10:30 so he told everyone that he was going to try and take a nap. He had been lucky and managed to nab the lone single seat in the front of the quiet car so his bags were safely acting as a footstool and he wasn’t being squished by the enormous woman who had gotten on in Utica, NY. Now that it was time for him to take a nap, it was a little difficult to turn off his brain, even though he knew he needed the sleep if he didn’t want dark bags under his eyes for his date with Blaine tomorrow. Was it a date? If not, what was it? Did he want it to be a date? Were they doing it again and skipping over the talking part and trying to put themselves right back into the middle of a relationship? Why were things always so damned complicated? These thoughts and many more were what finally drug Kurt down into a restless sleep.

At 2:20, he was startled awake by the loud snoring from the man seated behind him. Deciding that he might as well stay up, he pulled out his laptop from its case and booted up only to see that by some miracle that there was an internet connection. Kurt quickly pulled up Facebook to waste some time since he really didn’t feel like doing more homework right now. While he was waiting for his browser to open to the page, he quickly checked his phone for new texts. There were a few, most of them saying good night. There were also a few emails, but the one that caught his eye was from Blaine.  
 _Dear Kurt,_  
I just wanted to let you know that I can’t wait to see you tomorrow. I’ve been making my “secret sauce” and will have your favorite lasagna and garlic bread for lunch and I’ve got one of our pillow/blanket forts set up in the living room in front of the fireplace so that we can be comfortable while we talk about entirely uncomfortable subjects. I know that you said that you wouldn’t hate me no matter how mad you were, but I really hope that’s true. I love you and I really need you to understand what happened and just how badly I feel about everything. I never meant to hurt you. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me and I can’t imagine losing you forever. I’m probably making you more nervous than ever with this crazy message, but I just wanted to get that out of the way before we talk. To make sure that you know that I know I screwed up and will probably never forgive myself, but also that I’m going to be nervous while we’re talking and you might have to press the subject to get things out of me like you always do. Thank you so much for coming into my life and thank you again for allowing me to explain my stupidity. I love you more that you could ever know.  
Yours always,  
Blaine

Kurt had to wipe away a tear after feeling the desperation in the short email. What the hell had happened to his beautiful man and why was he feeling so guilty over something that was sounding more and more like it wasn’t his fault at all. Looking up from his phone, he saw that Facebook was up and that Blaine was on chat so he opened up the chat screen and sent a quick hello.

 **B:** _Hey there! I thought there wasn’t wifi on your train._  
 **K:** _There wasn’t supposed to be, but it was here when I woke up and turned on the laptop so I’m taking advantage of it. :)_  
What are you doing up so late? I know your sauce doesn’t need constant attention. Btw, I just read your email and I can’t wait to see you either.  
Your plans sound great.  
 **B:** _:D YAY! I’m glad you like them. I was worried it might sound a little too silly with the fort and everything.  
_ **K:** _Nope, not at all. I was not happy with how you were talking about yourself again though_  
You are not stupid!!! And I am nervous too, but we will get through this together.  
Just like we always do. :)  
 **B:** _I know, I know. I can’t help it sometimes. I will try to remember that I’m brilliant. ;)_  
Oh yeah, you asked why I was up so late. I couldn’t sleep. I fell asleep in bio since we had a sub who showed a stupid movie and the nap seemed to take care of me sleeping tonight too.  
 **K:** _I know how that is! It’s hard to stay awake in some of my classes too.  
Especially things like Theatre History where I already know just about everything already!_

 __The two talked late into the night until Blaine finally started falling asleep around 4am and Kurt played a few games then read for the remainder of his ride. When he came into the station, he was almost immediately grabbed by a very tall person and swung around like a ragdoll. Both laughing, Kurt started smacking Finn to let him down before he broke something that he couldn’t afford to replace. Grabbing the larger of the bags, Finn led Kurt out to his car and after stopping at a diner on the way, they reached the familiar house they both called home just before 6. Kurt dragged himself in and after getting hugs from his father and Carole; he made his way up to his room. He dropped his bags, stepped quickly into the bathroom for a short shower to get the travelling grime off of himself and changed into his pajamas. He slid into his bed to take a nap for a few hours, planning on getting up at 9:30 which would give him enough time to see his family and get ready for his date before making his way to Blaine’s house by noon.

 **~KB~KB~KB~  
**  
Kurt woke up feeling more refreshed than he had expected after only three hours of sleep, but when he looked at the clock he started to understand. It was not 9:30 when he had two and a half hours to socialize, shower, primp and drive to Blaine’s, it was actually 10:48 so he only had a little over an hour and that meant that he would be late. The drive alone was thirty minutes and there was no way he would be able to complete his shower, hair, moisturizing routine, and primping over his clothes as he was expecting to be able to do. He would have to call Blaine, but first he had some yelling to do. Stomping down the stairs still in his pajamas, Kurt went straight into the living room where, as expected, all of the men in the household were congregated watching some sporting event on television. Stopping in the doorway, hands on his hips, best bitch-glare in place, he then started his rant. “Who the hell turned off my alarm?? I had things I needed to do this morning and I wanted to spend time with you guys before I went to see Blaine, but apparently no one cares about that!”

Burt, Finn and Sam all whipped around at the first screech and then started to cringe at the implications of what they had thought would be a nice gesture. Yes, they wanted to make sure Kurt got enough sleep but they hadn’t thought about the fact that he was supposed to be meeting Blaine at noon and that he might not have enough time to do things that he may have wanted to before leaving. Feeling bad since it was his idea, Burt spoke up, “I’m sorry son. I asked Sam to turn off your alarm since you looked so tired when you got in this morning. We didn’t realize how late it was or we would have woken you up sooner. Why don’t you just call Blaine and reschedule for later? I know he wouldn’t mind.”

“That’s not the point dad! I know he wouldn’t mind rescheduling but he went to a lot of trouble cooking lunch for us and we are both really stressed out about this talk and what is going to come from it. Can’t you understand that I would like to get that stress out of the way as quickly as possible so that I could enjoy my weekend with you guys? I’ve missed you guys like crazy and wanted to spend as much time together as possible and make some time to see a few other friends as well. Now, I’ve got to go get ready to leave. I’m not sure when I’ll be back, but if it’s going to be late I’ll make sure to call.” Shoulders drooping slightly, Kurt made his way up to his room and pulled out the outfit that he had painstakingly put together with Rachel and Isabelle’s help. He turned on the hot water and hung the clothes on the back of the door so that the steam would remove any wrinkles from being shoved into a suitcase while he grabbed his phone and sent Blaine a quick text saying that he may be a few minutes late since his alarm was sabotaged. He got a response back less than a minute later that it was okay and he would be waiting for him to arrive since he was running a little behind with the lasagna too. Breathing a sigh of relief, he managed to turn his facial and hair time from an hour into half that and he was dressed and dashing for the door by 11:30. If traffic wasn’t bad, he might actually be on time.

Poking his head back into the living room, he said a hasty goodbye and made his way to his car and plugged in his iPod and phone before turning on the engine and pulling out onto the familiar street. He made this trip almost without paying any attention. His car seemed to know the way without any input from Kurt and he was almost surprised to see Blaine’s house come into view as he rounded a corner. He felt his nerves tense as he parked and got out to walk the short distance to the front door. Would things be awkward when he went in? Would they be able to talk about what they needed to talk about? Would he decide to damn the conversation and just jump Blaine? Shaking his head to clear the insecurities away, he raised his hand to knock as the door swung open to reveal a wildly smiling Blaine. “I heard you pull up. How are you doing?”

The shining smile broke through all of Kurt’s doubts and he pulled him into a tight hug. “I hope this is okay. I just really missed you.”

Blaine returned the hug and held on for all he was worth. He knew that this might be the last time they would do this and he was taking advantage of the opportunity. “This is more than okay. I’ve missed you too, Kurt. Come on in before we both freeze,” he said while chuckling. Pulling Kurt in by the hand, he moved them into the kitchen where he was putting the finishing touches on their lunch. “I’ve got everything just about done. I just need to slice everything up and plate it all. You’ve got perfect timing. How did you manage to get ready so quickly? You never take less than an hour for your moisturizing and dressing and hair.”

Kurt stuck his tongue out at Blaine and just said, “Talent.”

He smirked and said, “Yes, I remember that talented tongue. But I meant your time management.”

Kurt was frozen for a moment as his brain tried to melt at the mental images that Blaine’s flirty words brought, but he recovered and scowled at him, “You know that is not what I meant, Blaine Warbler. I am talented in many ways, I will have you know.”

Walking over to his beautiful ex, Blaine put a hand on Kurt’s arm before gazing into his lovely eyes and said, “Yes, I know that too. You are one of the most talented people I know and I am so proud to have you as a part of my life. No matter what that part is.”

Kurt melted again and grabbed him in another tight hug. “You have got to stop saying things like that to me or you are going to make me cry before we even get to the serious talking. Or possibly before we even make it to the table for lunch.”

“Nope, we will have no crying this early in the day. Let’s grab our plates and go eat then we can have our talk. How long do I have you today, anyway?”

Both boys grabbed their lunch and moved to the table that was already set up with drinks and silverware for their meal. “You have got me for as long as we need. I told everyone that I wasn’t sure when I was going to be back but I would call if it was going to be late.”

They continued on with the small talk and catching up while they ate and soon they were taking their plates to the sink where they rinsed everything before loading it into the dishwasher and turned it on to work while they talked. Taking a deep breath, Kurt took Blaine’s hands and quietly said, “It’s time. You ready for this?”

Fear showed in Blaine’s eyes briefly then it changed to determination. He was going to talk about this if it killed him and then he was going to make sure that Kurt didn’t hate him before begging him to still be at least his friend. He nodded and grabbed a couple of bottles of water from the fridge before taking Kurt’s hand again and leading them into the living room. He smiled at the memories of the times they had done this before, either for movie nights or sharing secrets. He supposed that’s exactly what was going to happen here today. He was going to share a secret with the man he loved and hope that he didn’t hate him afterwards. They both sat and got settled while every possible outcome ran through both of their heads along with a multitude of questions from both sides. Kurt turned to Blaine and sat across from him, looking directly in his eyes and took both hands in his own before asking, “Can you tell me what happened?”

He took in a shuddering breath then the words started falling from his lips,” When you were still here, I knew that we would be together but I also knew that you were miserable. You loved me and what we had together, but you really wanted to be in New York. That’s why I encouraged you to go, because I could see your spirit dying in pieces every day you stayed here. I think I was a little naïve when this started because I really did expect to be coming up every other weekend and that we would be able to stay as closely in touch while you there and working as we would have here. I found out pretty quickly that wasn’t how things worked and I started to get a little more depressed every day.” Pausing to take a deep breath, Blaine quietly continued, “One thing you don’t know about me, that I probably should have shared a long time ago, is that I have struggled with clinical depression and lingering self-esteem issues since the whole dance thing at my old school before Dalton. I haven’t had to take meds for a long time, but I was always told that it might come to that again but I didn’t want to believe it. I knew that you were pulling away just because of the lack of time you had and not because you didn’t love me anymore, but there was always that little voice in my head that kept saying I was fooling myself. I am going to say this now before I go into anything else. I love you and I am not blaming you for anything at all. I blame myself for everything that happened and I know that the issues I have are my own and not because of anything you said or did. Can you accept that and still listen to what I was feeling then?”

Kurt squeezed his hands tighter and leaned in to kiss Blaine on the cheek. “I know I played a part in this too, Blaine. Don’t try to say that I didn’t because I know better. I’ve had time to look back at things and I see how wrong we both were for not talking to each other and hiding what we were truly feeling. Sam said something to me the other night that really hit me and made me start yelling at him but then he asked me if I had tried to say any of these things to you and I realized that I hadn’t. If we had both just shared our feelings, things may not have turned out like they did. I want to tell you what I told him before you go any farther so that you might see how I really did play a part in this and you don’t need to keep beating yourself up over every tiny thing. I was still getting used to living in a new place so far from home and all of my friends and family other than Rachel, I had a new job that I loved but was so very stressful where I was freaking out trying to get everything done the way it should have been done. I missed everyone so fucking much I couldn’t stand it and I was living with the biggest diva in the whole of New York. On top of all of that, I was feeling so damned guilty that I was doing what I had been dreaming of for so long, because I still wanted to be back here where I had everyone who loved me and I knew I was safe. Does that change how you’re seeing anything that happened yet?”

Blaine was shocked into silence while still holding on to Kurt’s hands as if they were his only link to reality. His mind was spinning with all of the things Kurt had just told him and he did start to see things a little differently. They had both been lonely, insecure and longing for something they couldn’t have at that moment and they just reacted differently. “Yes, that does put things into a bit of a different perspective, but I still need to tell you my side of this too. Thank you for sharing that with me though. I think it might just make some of this easier to tell.” He looked back into those beautiful eyes that had captured his heart from the first meeting, even if he didn’t realize it until later and he gave a small smile and squeeze of his hands before continuing. “You started cancelling dates and stopped answering my texts or phone calls. You seemed to be pulling away and realistically I can see things differently now, but at the time I truly thought you were starting to fall out of love with me. I needed something to keep myself busy so Sam and I decided to run for Senior class President and Vice-President. I tried to talk to you about it and get input on things like posters or platform ideas, but you were so excited about your new job that it just didn’t seem to matter. The final straw was something I don’t know if you will even remember. It was a scheduled phone call at lunch while you were at work and you were answering the phones. I was getting really upset and had been feeling more lonely and out of control but still couldn’t admit that I should go back to my doctor and get back on my meds for a while, but when I tried to tell you how much I missed you, you just said you did too and that I would be there in two weeks. You ended up having to go and said that you couldn’t call me back because you would be working until midnight and then pretty much hung up on me while I was saying that I loved you and it felt like something inside of me broke. I knew that feeling from before, but it still didn’t hit me that I wasn’t thinking clearly. I was only seeing that you didn’t want to talk to me and the depression started throwing things way out of proportion in my mind making me think that you didn’t want to see or talk to me, that you weren’t in love with me anymore and that I was all alone.”

Kurt stopped him briefly by pulling him into his arms and hugging him tightly to his chest while murmuring apologies in his ear for several minutes before releasing him, handing him a bottle of water and saying, “I’m sorry for interrupting you, but I couldn’t see you like that and not have you in my arms any longer. Would it be alright if I kept holding you while we’re talking?”

Blaine gave him a watery smile and agreed, “I think that would be really nice but the rest of what I have to tell you is about what I did and I’m not sure if you would really want to be holding onto me while I’m telling you that stuff.”

“Blaine, I played a part in this and I need to accept responsibility for what I caused. I know you did things and that you cheated, but I feel like I helped push you into it now that I’m hearing things from your side and looking back at what happened. I want to hold you because I need to feel you close while we’re having this conversation but if you would rather not, I understand. It is completely up to you.”

“As much as I want to be in your arms, I need to be able to look you in the eyes while I tell you this stuff,” he said sadly.

Kurt understood and then had an idea that might help both of them, “How about you sit in my lap? That way we can look at each other but still be holding on as well.”

The brilliant smile on Blaine’s face let Kurt know that he had come up with the perfect compromise. They shifted around until they found a comfortable position, Blaine sitting in front of Kurt with his legs over the other boy while wrapped in the warm cocoon of his arms. They could even lean in and talk with foreheads touching like they used to if it felt right. Letting out a happy sigh, he continued on with his story. “A little later that day, I was sitting alone in the choir room singing and I went on Facebook. There was this guy that I had met through David from Dalton who had been trying to chat me up for a while. I didn’t want anything to do with him because I had you, but I was feeling so alone that I just wanted to be with someone who wanted me. Someone who would make me feel attractive and not like a loser. He sent me a message calling me sexy and asking if I wanted to come over and I ended up going. It didn’t feel right, but I couldn’t seem to stop myself. He’s older and goes to Ohio State. When I got to his dorm, he asked if I wanted to watch a movie so I said okay and he gave me a drink that I thought was Sprite but turned out to be a vodka-tonic. You know what a lightweight I am when it comes to drinking. That thing hit me like a ton of bricks and when he started getting a little flirty I let him. I’m so ashamed. I know I should have stopped him, but I didn’t. He had his arm around me during the start of the movie and then leaned over and kissed me. I kinda pushed him back saying that I had a boyfriend and he apologized and backed off but gave me another drink. This went on for a while and I guess about 3 drinks in I stopped saying no to the kisses. It still didn’t feel right because I wasn’t kissing you and I knew that you would be mad, but the alcohol seemed to override the commonsense part of my brain. When he started trying to get my pants open, that’s when I started saying no again. I stood up and tried to leave, but my legs didn’t seem to want to cooperate. He laughed when I fell back down on the couch and said that I didn’t really want to leave. He started kissing me again and I tried pushing him away again but he just laughed saying that I was playing hard to get. When he finally got my jeans opened he shoved his hand in them and seemed to be pissed off that I wasn’t hard so he started-” Blaine paused and took a sip of water and seemed to gather his courage again before continuing on, “He started jerking me off and of course I started getting hard, I’m seventeen for god’s sake. I get hard from a strong breeze. Anyway, he kept on jerking me off until I was completely hard and then he slid off the couch and pulled my jeans off. I was still trying to stop him, but I was a lot drunker than I had realized and he was a lot stronger than me. So, he opened his pants and grabbed a condom that I hadn’t seen sitting there from the table and then I started really freaking out. I told him that I didn’t want to do this and that it was a mistake but he kept saying that he would make it good for me and that I should just let it happen. I was crying at this point and that seemed to make him even madder than he already was and he started calling me a baby and a cock-tease. I could feel his fingers trying to get me ready and I was trying to pull away still but he had me laying down on the couch now and, um, well we ended up having sex.”

Kurt was holding Blaine so tight that it was almost painful, but he felt like he deserved it for hurting Kurt. Tears were streaming down his face and he noticed Kurt was looking like he was bouncing from livid to disgusted and back. Blaine tried to get up, but Kurt pulled him back and kissed him on the forehead after handing him a tissue before he began to speak. “So what you are telling me is that this animal raped you? And you are feeling guilty because you couldn’t fight back? But you are blaming yourself because you were desperate for attention and thought a friend of a close friend wanting to hang out would be better than being alone?”

“It wasn’t rape, I went there of my own free will and things just got out of hand.”

Kurt looked at him with shock on his face before saying, “Did you say no?” Small nod. “Did you try to push him away and leave?” Another small nod. “You specifically told him you did not want to fuck him because you had a boyfriend but he still kept going?” Nod. “You were crying and saying no when he started fucking you?” Nod. “What is this fucker’s address because I am going to go and rip his balls off and shove them down his throat and then we are taking you back to your therapist?”

Blaine didn’t know what to say at Kurt’s outburst. Sam was right, this was pretty much the same reaction he’d had when Blaine had finally broken down and talked to him about what happened. He didn’t understand how they didn’t see it was all his fault. He had gone over there and even though he didn’t want it, he knew it was a possibility. “No, Kurt you’re not going to do that! I don’t understand why you’re mad at him but not at me. I’m the one who cheated on you. I went over there and drank and kissed him before anything else got out of hand. This wasn’t rape.”

“Baby, you are not seeing this from the right point of view. You are seeing this through the depression-distorted vision of what happened. Do this for me, close your eyes. Okay, now picture Tina. Mike just left for college and she is really sad and lonely. She decides to hang out with a guy friend of hers that she knows from that Asian camp they worked at. When she gets there they start watching a movie and the guy gives her a drink. Then another and another. The whole time he is pushing her to make out with him. She finally gives in because she’s drunk and doesn’t know better but when he puts his hands up her skirt she tries to stop him. She can’t stand up because she’s drunk. The guy pulls off her panties and even though she is saying no he starts doing things to her. He pulls off his pants and puts on a condom and pushes her down and fucks her. Was that rape?”

Blaine’s eyes shot open and he looks as if he’s going to be sick, “Of course it was! How can you even ask that? Oh wait-” His eyes get bigger and bigger as he thinks about the similarities in his story to the imaginary one Kurt played out and he starts to see that something very wrong happened that night that was not his fault. Quickly he stood up and ran to the bathroom where he proceeded to throw up his lunch. He felt Kurt’s calming presence behind him and then a soothing hand rubbing circles on his back which helped bring him back to himself. He mumbled apologies while wiping his mouth and flushing the toilet and then he seemed to realize exactly what happened. The tears were back and suddenly he was wrapped in strong arms while he cried his heart out. How could he not have seen what had really happened here? Kurt was right, his depression was playing with his mind to the point where he couldn’t think straight anymore. He had been violated and then blamed himself and made his boyfriend think that he had voluntarily cheated on him. He was such a fool. He should have seen the signs. He felt himself being led back to the nest of pillows and Kurt helped lower him down until both of them were lying side by side holding each other as tightly as they could.

He noticed that Kurt had started speaking and tried to start paying attention to what he was saying, “-your therapist. Have you seen her recently or should we try to find a new one for you?”

“I’m sorry, but I missed the first part of what you said. You asked if I’ve seen her recently and I did see her just before starting at McKinley. Mom wanted to make sure that coming back to public school wouldn’t cause any problems. I really like Linda and she knows my history so I would like to see her again. I believe I even have her card in my wallet. Let me look.” He quickly found Dr. Linda Pierce’s card and handed it to Kurt. Looking at it curiously, he looked back at Blaine and asks, “Did you know that this is Brittany’s mom? Not that she will say anything to Brit! But it’s kind of a coincidence, huh?”

How had he never put that together in his mind? Linda was great though and he trusted her to not say anything to his friend. “I don’t know how I missed that, but she’s really awesome. I still want to call her. Should I call the emergency number she listed? What do you think?”

Kurt nodded and pulled Blaine close again before saying, “Yes, you will call her right now or I will because this is something that needs to be handled as soon as possible. Do you want to make the call or do you want me to?”

He looked at Kurt as if he was the most precious thing on earth and to Blaine he was. This wonderful person in front of him was so generous and caring that he was willing to do anything to make this horrible situation better for him. He beamed back at him and quietly asked if he would mind calling. Kurt agreed and immediately dialed the number listed as an emergency contact on the card. There were several prompts listed as options including one to renew a prescription and the one they needed which was to speak with the doctor herself. They waited a tense couple of minutes while the call was connected and then rang several times before they heard a polite, “Dr. Linda Pierce, how can I help you?”

Kurt started to speak slowly, “Um, Dr. Pierce, my name is Kurt Hummel and I am here with a former patient of yours who really needs to talk with you if you have some time. His name is Blaine Anderson.”

“Of course I have time for him, dear. Just give me a minute to get to my office.” The boys heard a quiet conversation that sounded like the doctor excusing herself and then shuffling while walking. The doctor started speaking again as soon as they heard the click of a door closing, “Thanks so much for holding on. Now what can I do for you boys? You said that Blaine needed to speak with me?”

“Yes ma’am, he is just a little nervous and I offered to make the initial call to get in touch with you. He’s right here with me. I’m going to pass the phone to him if that’s okay?”

“That’s fine. Thank you for being such a good friend and offering your help, Kurt.”

Kurt passed the phone to Blaine who looked terrified but still took it and started talking, “Hi Linda. Thanks for taking my call on a Saturday. I’m afraid that I’m having a bit of a relapse with my depression and I think I might have to go back on my meds. The signs have been there but I just didn’t see them for what they were until Kurt made me see how blind I was being earlier today.”

“Oh Blaine, we all go through tough times. Don’t beat yourself up for this. I would be happy to have a quick session to evaluate whether we need to put you back on your medication or not and if we might need to set up a few sessions as well. If you like, we can even do a Skype session right now if you feel that you really need to talk to someone immediately.”

Kurt heard this and saw Blaine’s hesitation. He hit the speaker button so that both of them could talk and hear what was going on before chiming in, “Dr. Pierce, this is Kurt again and we’ve got you on speaker. I hope that’s alright. I just wanted to say that I really think that Blaine needs to talk to someone as soon as he can but he looked like he was about to back out and I don’t want to see this get any worse than it already is.”

“Thanks again for your concern for Blaine. It sounds like he has a lot of support in you and that he will need itfrom what you both have said. You are welcome to sit in on the phone or Skype calls as long as Blaine consents and from what I’m hearing in the background that sounds like he is agreeing. Now, would you boys like to come in or would Skype be better?”

Kurt looked at Blaine and seeing how fragile he looked, he made the decision himself. “Dr. Pierce, would it be okay to come in. Blaine is very hesitant to talk about this and apparently I’m only the second person he has told about it and it happened months ago. I’m really worried about him and I think seeing you in person might help him a little more than talking to a computer screen.” He pulled the shaking boy closer to hug him tightly while they continued their conversation.

“I completely understand Kurt. It sounds like that may be the best thing. My address is on my card and Blaine knows where my office is so just let me know when you will be here so I can have everything ready.”

“Thank you so much Dr. Pierce! I have a quick question for you though. I’m a friend of your daughter’s and I was wondering if your office is in your home because Brit knows Blaine also. They are in Glee club together.”

Chuckling, the doctor replied, “I thought I recognized your name Kurt. Brit has mentioned you several times. My office is in my home, but there is a separate entrance and Brittany isn’t home at the moment. Santana is in town and they went out for the day so you can come over with no worries of being seen.”

“Great! We should be there in about twenty minutes. Thank you again.”

Once the call was disconnected, Kurt turned to Blaine and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek and then pulled him up from their nest of pillows and blankets where they had been so comfortable. “Come on, baby. We need to get you out of these clothes and into some clean ones and get those teeth brushed so we can go, alright?” He led Blaine up the stairs to his bedroom and walked in. He nudged him towards the bathroom and got a small grin in response to his offer to find clothes. Blaine washed his face and then brushed his teeth and now he felt much more human than just a few minutes ago. He was starting to get his equilibrium back and it was helping with his confidence as well. He walked out of his bathroom and found Kurt holding a pair of jeans and a soft, long-sleeved tee and cardigan for him to wear. There were even clean socks and boxers laid out “just in case.” This was just what he needed. He needed to see the caring expression on Kurt’s face and how lovingly he was being taken care of. He went to give him a hug, just because he needed it and then started changing before he heard the quick gasp of surprise when he dropped his pants. Blushing a lovely shade of crimson, Blaine apologized only to get a squeaked, “No problem.” Chuckling to himself, he finished dressing and then grabbed Kurt’s hand and led him out to his car. Kurt insisted on driving because Blaine was still shaky and he didn’t want them to be in an accident on the way. Blaine pointed out the second driveway that Kurt had never really paid attention to and pulled in to a small parking lot that looked to be big enough for about four cars.

Blaine led Kurt to the door of the office and knocked. The door opened revealing a very attractive woman in her mid-to late thirties who ushered them into a comfortable looking office. She gave Blaine a squeeze on the shoulder and shook hands with Kurt before leading them to a couple of chairs in front of her desk. “Now, let’s get down to business. What’s happened that’s got you so upset Blaine?”

Kurt grabbed Blaine’s hand and gave him an encouraging smile. This gave him the courage to launch into his explanation while the doctor listened. She was good at keeping an open and nonjudgmental expression on her face while making notes on a pad in front of her. Once he was finished, Linda started asking questions. She was wonderful at getting to the heart of the problem with as little fuss as possible. She asked when things had happened and what happened after the events of the night. She even asked Kurt a few questions to get things from a different person’s perspective. “Boys, I’m going to be honest here. I haven’t had a case like this in quite a few years because many males are too ashamed to report the assault, especially in a small town like Lima. I want to commend you for letting someone know about this. I would like for you to file a formal complaint with the officer that I’m going to give you the name of and you can talk to him about what can be done now. Since you are under eighteen, Blaine, I’m required by law to report this as well. It has been several months since the incident, so I’m not sure exactly what they will have you do other than file the report. The next thing we are going to do is get you a new prescription for your anti-depressants. You were right that the signs were there but you overlooked them. You also didn’t tell those closest to you what was going on so that they could help look for them. I want you to promise me that you are going to talk to your friends about what you are going through. You would be surprised how many people would understand at least to a certain extent. You will also set up regular weekly appointments with me for the next two months. We’ll see how things go from there and figure it out as we go along. Does this sound acceptable, Blaine?”

“Yes, I think that I can talk to a few people about what happened and I want to tell a few people about my depression also. Is it going to be weird if Brit is one of the people I tell? And Kurt would you be upset if I talked with Burt and Carole?” He was given two negatives and made a decision. He wanted to run this by both Kurt and Linda to see if they thought it would be a good idea, because it had been running through his mind since Linda mentioned telling some people about his issues. “I had an idea that I would kinda like your opinions on. I was thinking about maybe trying to get everyone I want to tell together and do it all at once. I think I would feel a lot better if I knew that I only had to do this once more.”

“I think that sounds great. If you want to do it this weekend, I can talk to dad and I know that he would be cool with you doing this at our house.”

“I agree with Kurt. This is a way for you to get to all of your friends at once and I’m sure that they will all be willing to help in whatever way they can. I’m really proud of you for coming up with this on your own Blaine. It shows me that you are already trying to come up with ways of facilitating your recovery.”

A short time later, Kurt and Blaine were heading out to get Blaine’s prescription filled and head to the Hummel residence to talk with Burt and Carole about having their gathering descend on them. “Do you really think that your family will be okay having all those people there for me? Especially with the weird circumstances.”

Kurt turned to look at Blaine and gave him a swat on the back of the head before saying, “Blaine, you know that you are a part of my family. Dad told me what they said to you the other night so I know that you’ve heard it from them as well as me. They love you and this is a huge deal. They will be hurt if you didn’t want to include them in this. Besides, Carole thrives on get-togethers like this. She loves having a full house that she can cook for. We’ll just stop by the store and pick up supplies on the way and then we need to make a list of who you want to be there. We can even include a few people on Skype if you want to try and have Cooper there. What do you say?”

Blaine practically threw himself at Kurt in thanks. He knew that he wouldn’t have been able to make it through this without him and told him as much. “Thank you so much for helping me with this. I know we’re not together-”

Kurt interrupted before he could get any farther, “That is another thing we need to talk about, but we will leave that for right now and finish our little outing and go talk to dad and Carole. Deep discussions will be tabled until after planning and prep sessions, okay?”

Smiling back at his love, he nodded. They continued to finish their errands and Kurt had made sure to call his father somewhere along the way and let him know that he and Blaine would be over around 6:30. They were a little early and all of the grocery bags they were carrying gained them a raised eyebrow and confused look from Carole. They unloaded and put away everything then called a family meeting to talk about tomorrow. Sam was included and when he came downstairs, he headed to Blaine to give him what looked like a much needed hug. Soon, everyone was assembled in the living room and Kurt sat beside a very nervous Blaine. He decided to help the flustered teen and start off things with a little explanation, “Okay guys, I know that you are all wondering what’s going on. I think that Sam probably already knows about as much as I do, but when Blaine and I talked today some pretty serious things came out and they are things that he needs help with. They are also things that he needs to share with a number of people so we were hoping that it would be alright if we had some people over tomorrow and explain everything all at once to everybody. Would that be okay with you guys? We would cook all the food and we already bought the groceries, but we can always do it at Blaine’s house-”

Burt interrupted what looked to be a very long and complicated ramble and said, “Of course we don’t mind. We’ve known for a while that something was up with you Blaine, but we could tell that you just weren’t ready to talk about it yet. I’m glad that you are now and we definitely don’t mind having people over here if it will help you out. Is there anything we can do to help? Anything you might want to tell us ahead of time that would make it easier on you?”

As Blaine looked into the open, honest and clearly concerned faces surrounding him, he felt tears start to fall and was pulled closer to Kurt. He dropped his face onto his shoulder and whispered to Kurt to fill them in on as much as he thought they should know ahead of time. “Well, he’s not quite feeling up to this yet so he wants me to tell you a little bit. I won’t get into the major things until tomorrow, but I think you all should know that Blaine has suffered from depression for several years. It wasn’t a problem for a while but his therapist said that emotional events can cause things to pop back up when least expected. The signs were there, but because of the depression, he wasn’t really in the right mind set to see them for what they were. He also thought it wasn’t an issue anymore so he didn’t think it was necessary to tell anyone that he might need help. Needless to say, my move and all the stress from senior year didn’t help but something big happened and it has been affecting him pretty seriously for months now. It was actually the cause of our break up and we didn’t even know until we were talking earlier today. Way too many misunderstandings happened and too little communication. I think we should leave it for there right now and everyone can hear the rest tomorrow, is that okay?”

Everyone nodded in agreement before coming over to offer up hugs, kisses and brotherly pats on the back to show their acceptance of Blaine and their willingness to support him. Kurt had one more question for his dad before they started the rest of their preparations for tomorrow, “Dad, would you mind if Blaine stayed here tonight? I don’t want him to be alone in that big house of his after such an emotional day. And maybe tomorrow too, now that I think of it.”

Looking fondly at both boys, Burt nods and smiles, “That’s fine. I don’t like the idea of him being alone either.”

Kurt sprung at his father and wrapped him in a very enthusiastic hug, “Thanks so much, dad! I love you. We’re going to run back to pack a bag for him, make the phone calls to invite everyone and we should be back in a few hours. Carole, don’t worry about food or anything like that. We’re planning on telling everyone 1:30 tomorrow so we’ll have plenty of time to get it all ready then. We might stop to pick up a few more drinks though, is there anything you need for us to pick up?”

 **~KB~KB~KB~  
**  
By eight, Kurt and Blaine were finished with the final shopping they needed to do for tomorrow, had packed a bag for Blaine to stay at the Hummel-Hudson residence for at least two nights and were now starting to make phone calls to the people that Blaine had decided that he wanted to tell. There were most of the New Directions, some Warbler friends and even Ms. Pillsbury since she would need to know as the school’s Guidance Counselor. Blaine had been quite surprised when Kurt had suggested that he might want to invite Sebastian and David Karofsky, but when he heard about the changes in both boys and thought about having a few other gay male friends to talk to, he decided that it was a good idea. He had also requested that Kurt contact Rachel, Mercedes and Mike as they were still close, but he made it clear that he did not want Brody in the apartment while Rachel was on Skype and also that he didn't want her to mention any details of the conversation with anyone not present during the meeting that Blaine had not approved of beforehand. This was a very serious problem for him and he didn’t want to have strangers to him knowing intimate details of things that had happened and he knew how Rachel was about sharing secrets. 

When Kurt made the phone call, Rachel was surprised and a little reluctant to throw her new boyfriend out but knew that if Kurt was asking this of her it must be serious so she agreed. He also made the call to Sebastian and David since he was the one keeping in contact with them. To say that Sebastian was shocked to be invited to something at Kurt’s house that was concerning Blaine would have been a major understatement. He was curious about the circumstances, but quickly agreed to come and bring his boyfriend with him as well. What Kurt hadn’t told them or Blaine was that from his correspondence with Dave, he knew that he was being treated for depression since his suicide attempt the previous year. He also knew that one of the major factors in Sebastian’s remarkable turnaround was that his parents had insisted that he go into therapy after hearing what he had been accused of doing to Blaine last year. He hoped that they could help each other in dealing with the problems that would face them during their recovery. 

All calls were completed by nine and everyone was going to be available to meet with them tomorrow at 1:30. There would be thirteen people from New Directions, eight Warblers including Dave, four Skype participants and three adults to oversee the proceedings in the form of Kurt’s parents and Emma Pillsbury. Both of them were exhausted, but they knew that they needed to finish off their interrupted conversation from this afternoon before they headed back to Kurt’s to settle in for the night. They made their way back down to their little nest after taking Blaine’s things to the car and then snuggled together before Blaine started to talk.

“I know that we’ve made some pretty big breakthroughs this afternoon with what you made me realize but I have to ask what’s next? I really need your help to try and make it through this now that I finally understand what happened. I know that you will be there because you’ve proven that this afternoon and evening. My only real question is where do we stand, as a couple?” Blaine’s face was practically hiding in the neckline of Kurt’s sweater, and he could tell that his ex was thinking things over very carefully due to the completely altered situation. Nothing was as it had seemed and it almost knocked Kurt off of the safe little wall that he had built around his heart since the break-up.

Leaning back just enough to gently tilt back Blaine’s face and look into his beautiful eyes, Kurt started talking, “Well, I think that I would like to have an active role in whatever needs to happen to get you back to being healthy in all ways. I know that I played a big part in the problems that we made for each other in this relationship but I also know that we both need to accept that we weren’t alone in the creation of these issues. I want you to be able to admit that we both did things wrong without laying all of the blame on yourself. I need to stop laying all of the blame on either myself or you depending on the day and my mood after realizing that what you said about me pulling away was true. I need for us both to work on sharing more of what we are feeling about our relationship, even if it’s something bad. We are way too much alike in that way. We both tend to keep our feelings bottled up until they explode for no good reason and we really need to stop that. It isn’t healthy and it hurts everyone involved in the situation. I would like nothing more than to go right back to where we were and be absolutely in love and determined that nothing could break us apart, but I also know that isn’t really a good thing for either of us. It would put us right back to ignoring problems and not working on what is best for the both of us.” 

At hearing the last comment, Blaine’s face dropped in disappointment and he started to pull away from Kurt before he was pulled tightly back into Kurt’s arms. “I wasn’t finished. What I was going to say next is that I can’t go back to being just your friend. I love you too much for that to work out and I want to be able to pull you into a hug or hold hands or kiss you. Things that friends don’t normally do, but boyfriends do. If it’s alright with you, I would like to start over. I want us to go back to the start and take things slowly just like we did when we first started dating. We’ll go out for dates and hold hands. We’ll talk on the phone every night or at least email or text and make sure that we know what is going on with each other before we go to bed. If we have to miss a date or phone call then we have to let the other person know and give the true reason. There will be no lying or embellishing the truth saying that you’re overwhelmed with homework when you’re really emotionally overwhelmed by something. We need to build trust in each other again. The kind of trust that leaves us secure in our relationship even if we are states and hours away from each other. The kind of trust that means we can say whatever we want or need to and know that it will be accepted and not involve any kind of judgment. Do you think you would want that? Do you think you can make yourself talk to me even about the hard things?”

Blaine is quietly contemplating what Kurt has just told him and he is amazed by this man once more. After all of the things that he’s put him through, he still wants to have Blaine and all of his emotional baggage in his life. Looking at him with all of the love in his heart, he tells Kurt in a broken voice, “Of course I want that. I love you so much and I will make sure that I tell you everything that is going on with me. Are you sure that you want to put up with all of this shit right now? I know you’re crazy busy with school and work and Rachel, but I don’t think I could ever turn down time with you.”

Kurt pulls him tighter to his chest and kisses him gently on the lips, pulling away before it could grow more intense. “I love you too, Blaine. I want to help you get better and I know now that you didn’t cheat on me and that makes me sad because we wasted so much time being sad, angry and apart when I could have been helping you recover. I want to make something very clear to you also. I know that you were assaulted and while I am happy to hold you and kiss you, for now that is as far as things will go. I have a few girlfriends who have been through a rape and even though they thought they were ready for a more physical relationship, when they actually did it, they felt even worse about themselves than they had before. So for now, we are back to no visas for anything south of the equator. Is that okay?”

Blaine wondered if this was really because Kurt thought he was dirty or something like that instead of something for his benefit and thought that he should start this new relationship out in the way that they had talked about. In perfect honesty, so he asked Kurt, “Is it really because of that or are you not sure if you want to be with me physically anymore because I’m dirty and tainted?”

Kurt gave him a small smile that was both full of pride and also showed his irritation, “I just told you that we were going to be honest, remember? That means that what I told you was the truth. I don’t think you are dirty or anything like that. I do know that you are emotionally a little fragile because of what you went through and that we need to be a little more careful than we were before. I will say that I want you as much as I always have, but my physical desires are not even a consideration when we need to make you feel safe, secure and loved. This relationship has never been about sex. It was a nice part of it in the past and I’m sure it will be in the future as well, but for right now, we have other things we need to focus on. I am perfectly content to continue on with masturbation as I have been. I believe it was you who informed me that was why it was invented, wasn’t it?” Kurt asked with raised eyebrow and flirty smirk.

Blushing prettily, Blaine laughed and quietly said, “Yes, I think it was. Are you okay with doing that again though? I thought you had mentioned going out with that guy from the Glee club at NYADA. I don’t want to cause any problems for you if you really liked him.”

Blaine stopped talking quickly when Kurt burst into laughter. Shaking his head quickly and holding up a finger to signal giving him a minute, Kurt quickly composed himself and started to tell his short but quite funny story of Adam and how they met. After hearing the initial song, Blaine was practically in tears and had fallen down to lie on one of the pillows laughing hysterically after hearing about Rachel’s comment from yesterday morning. “I thought I was **so** lucky to get a date with him and then after going out, I realized why he wasn’t with anyone. He’s very sweet and intelligent conversation while listening to that accent was awesome, but honestly reminds me a little of Brittany without the wit. I suppose it was just the universe’s way of telling me that I was supposed to be with someone else.”

Blaine finally stopped laughing and turned his flushed face to Kurt and smiled brightly before grabbing him and hugging him tightly. “Thank you for believing in me and for being willing to wait. I don’t know how I could possibly do this without you beside me.” Leaning in, he placed a soft kiss on Kurt’s lips before putting his head on his shoulder while still holding on.

**~KB~KB~KB~**

After making their calls earlier, Kurt had spoken with Carole to let her know how many people would be there tomorrow and to let her know about all of the supplies they had gotten and what they would be making for tomorrow. She had also let him know that since she knew the boys would be out late with last minute details, she had decided to do what she did best: Bake! There were brownies, several different kinds of cookies and two cakes. This would go perfectly with the light lunch they were planning of pasta salads, sandwiches, chips and sodas. They would also be making large quantities of tea and lemonade just to make sure everyone was taken care of. 

One thing that he made sure of telling Carole was the fact that David Karofsky and Sebastian Smythe would be there tomorrow. He knew that she had seen both boys since they had become friends and that she would be able to let his father know in the least upsetting way possible. He thanked her profusely and explained his reasoning which she whole-heartedly agreed with. They would be ready for the influx of teenagers tomorrow and Blaine would have his own little army of supporters to help get him through this tough time. Carole knew that Blaine had something terrible that must have happened to him because the young man that she knew would never have done the things that he claimed to without a damned good reason. Her maternal instincts were on edge at not being able to help one of her own, but after tomorrow she hoped that wouldn’t be an issue any longer. Now all she had to do was tell Burt about the two unexpected guests.

**~KB~KB~KB~**

Sunday morning saw the Hudson-Hummel house very busy. Kurt, Blaine and Carole were joined in the kitchen by Sam and Finn. Finn couldn’t really cook but he was great at helping prep things like having enough plates and silverware out, cutting bread and assembling sandwiches for everyone. By one, there was a table full of food, coolers full of drinks and ice and pitchers of iced tea and lemonade waiting for their guests. Blaine and Kurt had decided that they would have two computers open to Skype and the one that Rachel and Cooper would be on would be muted due to their tendency to interrupt at the worst possible moment. Kurt called Rachel first and made sure that he told her to thank Brody for this after making sure that he was gone before he called Cooper. Coop was very protective of his baby brother but just because no one else could tease him didn’t mean that he couldn’t. This was one of the things that Kurt made sure to tell him was unacceptable and why he would be muted on their end so that he would be able to hear the call but no one in the room would be able to hear him. He wasn’t happy with this arrangement, but then neither was Rachel when she found out, but they both agreed for Blaine’s sake. 

People had started arriving not long after the food had been set out so there was a steady stream of people at the food tables and in the living room where extra chairs and pillows had been brought in to accommodate all of the people who would be here today. There was a place set up for Kurt and Blaine in front of the group as well as places set aside for Burt, Carole and Ms Pillsbury. Most of the people in attendance knew each other with the exception of the Warblers. Luckily they all arrived together since they were carpooling from Westerville. Wes, David, Trent and Thad came in quickly and greeted Kurt and Blaine and were introduced to those already there before noticing that the two couples that rode down with them there were no longer there. Thad went back outside and dragged in the overly affectionate Jeff and Nick who hadn’t even noticed that the car was now parked as well as the reluctant pair of Sebastian and David. Kurt noticed their reticence and decided to make sure they knew that they were welcome. Blaine trailed behind and they said their hellos before starting to chat a little and finally agreed to be dragged in and introduced when they had been assured that there wouldn’t be a problem from anyone there. There was a short lull in conversation when everyone saw who had just entered the room, but most of them knew that they would be here so they waved, nodded or said hello. The only worrisome moment had come from Burt making his way over to the pair and welcoming them, but also warning them to not make any trouble for any of the kids there. They both politely agreed and made their way to get food before the last few stragglers arrived.

As soon as everyone had gotten food, drinks and seats Kurt arranged the computers with their four Skye attendees and then asked everyone to quiet down so they could get started. Blaine looked terrified, and hadn’t let go of Kurt’s hand for at least thirty minutes, but that was alright with him. He knew that he was there to be Blaine’s anchor today. He started off with a brief introduction, “Hello everyone. I’d like to thank you all for coming over on such short notice. Most of you know each other with a few exceptions and I think that is mostly the Warblers. Guys, you know the New Directions, but I would like to introduce my parents, Burt and Carole as well as Ms Pillsbury who is our school guidance counselor. I’m only going to say this once and after that, I will start throwing people out, but I expect everyone here to be polite since I know that we don’t all get along. I want quiet because this is a very tough thing for Blaine to discuss and that is why we have muted the speech for the computer with Rachel and Cooper because we know they enjoy butting in at the exact wrong time with what they think are best intentions. If you have any questions or comments for anything you hear, I would ask that you keep it to yourself. We need to let Blaine finish telling us everything that he wants to share before bombarding him with more things for him to think about. Does everyone agree to these terms for the next hour or so?” Everyone nodded an affirmative answer and Kurt sat down beside Blaine and nudged him to let him know he could start talking now.

Blaine took a quick sip of his soda and cleared his throat before starting to speak. “I want to thank you all for being here for me. Like Kurt said, this is really difficult for me to talk about and I thought that telling everyone everything all at once would be better than having to tell it a million times to everyone individually. I want to make sure that everyone knows that what is discussed here today is not to be talked about with anyone who is not in this room. This is my life guys and I need to know that I can have my privacy while I’m dealing with everything I’m about to tell you. Firstly, I want to say that I have suffered from depression for a number of years. Most of you know, but for those of you who don’t, when I first came out at my old school before transferring to Dalton, I was attacked after going to a dance with a male friend. We were both hurt badly enough that we were in the hospital for several weeks and recovery took lots longer. That was when I first started seeing my therapist and she told me what was going on. I was on medication for the depression for about 9 months and by that time I was already at Dalton and I was repeating my freshman year. I haven’t needed the meds since then, but I started to notice feeling a little off when Kurt and I started talking about his move to New York after I’d transferred to McKinley. I didn’t really think much about it, I thought it was just me being sad because Kurt was leaving and I would be here without him for a while. When Kurt got his job at Vogue.com, he got really busy. This was expected and we had even talked about it before he left, but I started to feel like he didn’t want me anymore. He started missing phone calls or Skype dates because of work deadlines and I took it to mean that he didn’t love me. Even knowing that wasn’t true didn’t help because of my depression. It was making me not think clearly and I constantly had a little voice in my head telling me the worse things I thought about myself were true and I started doubting everything I knew about myself, Kurt and our relationship. I know you guys who were around me noticed the changes in me and several of you even commented on it and asked if you could help. I still couldn’t see what was going on with me and from there things started to spiral out of control.”

He paused and took another sip of his drink and leaned a little closer to Kurt who pulled him into a tight hug and whispered encouragement in his ear. He took a deep breath and then started talking again, “I’m not sure if any of you understand about depression or not, but it started making me almost into a totally different person. One day, Kurt had to hang up because he was answering phones while someone else was at lunch and that seemed to be the final straw for my wounded pride. I was doing what I usually do when I get kind of emotional and I was singing, but instead of picking something to cheer me up, I ended up singing something depressing that just made things worse. Anyway, I ran into this guy on Facebook that I had met through David a while ago and he asked if I wanted to come over. At that point, I felt like Kurt was leaving me behind and didn’t love me even though I was supposed to come to New York in a couple of weeks and we had been talking about it forever and were both really excited. When he asked me over, I ended up going. And before you ask David, I’m not going to tell you who it was so don’t bother asking. When I got there, I really wasn’t expecting anything other than hanging out with a friend and watching a movie. The fact that this guy had called me sexy made me feel good, but something just felt off. We started the movie and he gave me a drink that ended up being alcoholic and anyone who knows me knows that I **cannot** handle drinking. He kept trying to convince me to make out with him and I kept saying no until I was really too drunk to say no anymore and then things went a little too far and when I tried to leave, I couldn’t really walk.”

Kurt pulled Blaine into his lap and held him when he saw the tears threatening while he was telling the last part of his story. He knew that once people started to put things together in their minds that this would not turn out well and he needed to make sure that didn’t happen. He cleared his throat and said, “I know that what Blaine is about to say will upset most of you and that you are going to want to start saying things immediately. That is not what he needs from you right now, so don’t do it. Right now, Blaine needs you all to sit there, shut up and listen to him and then he can try and answer any other questions. Please let him do this at his own pace because he really needs to get this out and he will need everyone’s support to help get him past this.” 

Blaine leaned into Kurt and whispered to him for a moment and then Kurt shook his head and whispered back quietly before kissing Blaine’s forehead. Blaine nodded and reluctantly looked back at the group of his friends and started again, “I’m not going to go into details like I did with Kurt, but suffice it to say that I was forced into having sex with this person. After everything was over, I was feeling the depression worse than I had in a very long time and of course this caused me to only see my part in what had happened. I felt so guilty that I had cheated on Kurt that I changed my plane ticket and flew straight to see him. I told Kurt that I had been with someone and that it was just a hook up and hadn’t meant anything. Before anyone says anything, yes, I see now that is not the case, but I didn’t at the time. Kurt was really hurt, as you can expect and we ended up breaking up. After that, I got so much worse. I was pushing everyone away while I was flooding Kurt’s voicemail, email and text inboxes and couldn’t understand why he wasn’t responding. I see how insane I must have seemed then, but I didn’t at the time. Sam finally talked to me about what was going on and he forced me to explain what happened. He got really pissed off and wanted to go find the guy. I talked him out of that, but apparently he did call Kurt and made him come and talk to me this weekend while he was here seeing his family. When he came over yesterday and we talked, he had the same reaction as Sam, although expressed it a bit more graphically, but he also got me to see that I hadn’t done anything wrong. That I had been assaulted but I still didn’t believe it until he made me see it through the eyes of an outsider and described the same situation with Tina as the person it happened to. Was it rape? Of course it was! Oh wait! Once I saw that he had me call my therapist and we had a session and I’m now back on my meds and have appointments set up for the next couple of months. The last thing I’m going to say is this. I’m going to need your help. Everyone who is here. I might need a friendly ear to listen to me if I’m having a bad day. I might need a hug from someone who cares if I’m feeling down. Then again, I might need a swift kick in the ass to tell me to get over myself and actually talk about what is bothering me. Okay, now I know that you are all probably dying to say things but could we just have one at a time please? Also, Skype guys, you are last and you are limited to five questions each so get to thinking about what you want to ask.”

Surprisingly, the first person to speak was David Karofsky, “Blaine, I know that I don’t really know you other than being Kurt’s boyfriend and sorta friends with Sebastian, but I want you to know that I’ll be here for you. I am still on meds and in therapy from when I tried to kill myself and it would be really nice to have someone to talk to about some of those things. I know how much better I felt when I started going out with Sebastian because he understood a lot of the things I was going through and if I can, I’d like to help you too.”

Smiling at his boyfriend, Sebastian added, “I’m here for you too, Blaine. I know that we’ve had our differences, but I’ve been in therapy since last year. My parents made me after the Headmaster called them about the accusations about what happened with you and the bribery thing too. I want to apologize for my behavior and let you know that I will do whatever I can to help you. I think you’ve got all my info, but if not we can exchange numbers and such later and I’ll share with Dave, if that’s okay?”

Kurt had a small smile on his face because he knew that these two would be more than happy to offer assistance since they knew just what Blaine was going through. He saw that Blaine seemed happy at the offer as well. “Thanks guys, I know that Kurt mentioned that you were talking now and had really made a lot of changes for the better. I can see that he was right and I’ll definitely take you up on that offer. I really appreciate it.”

The next person to speak up was Sam and he came up and grabbed Blaine in a huge hug and said, “I love you like a brother, man. You know I’ve got your back and I’m here for whatever you need.”

Carole looked like she was about to burst into tears but pulled herself together enough to tell Blaine, “I should have known what was going on. I went through a bout of depression right after Finn’s dad died and I am so very sorry that I didn’t make you talk about what was going on, sweetheart.” Burt pulled her into his arms and continued on for her, “Blaine, you are like another son to us and we are here anytime you need us. It doesn’t matter what time it is, what day it is or anything like that. If you need us, we’re here. I know your parents travel a lot for their work so anytime you need a place to stay or if you just don’t want to be alone in that big house, you just come on over here. We’ve always got a place for you.”

This was exactly the kind of thing that Blaine needed to hear and he ran over to Burt and Carole and hugged them while all three cried. They had shown him more kindness than anyone ever had and he still couldn’t believe it. These wonderful people wanted him around even though he wasn’t related to them. He knew that they were more supportive to his problems than his own parents had ever been and this caused him to ask if they would be present when he explained to his parents. Carole suggested that they come over for dinner and then they could discuss things in a more informal setting. Blaine nodded his agreement and said that he would talk to his mother when they came back into town to set something up and would get back with Burt and Carole to set up a date and time.

Most of the New Directions came up together to hug and commend Blaine for being brave enough to share what happened to him and in the case of most of the male members as well as Santana, they also offered their services in tracking down his attacker and kicking the crap out of him. Marley and Unique offered to have Blaine over for their “girls nights” if he wanted to come since they knew about Kurt joining Rachel and Mercedes. Blaine thanked them all for the offers and said he would take them up on the offers of support, but declined the violence. Jeff and Nick came up and pulled him into a tight hug between the two boyfriends and explained that they would do whatever they could for him including outings, nights in with movies and dangerous amounts of junk food and the best snuggling available when Kurt wasn’t around. He laughed and agreed to take them up on all of their offers and even added the offer of including Kurt in the cuddling when he was around which the other boys quickly agreed to with huge, silly grins and waggling eyebrows. 

Trent and Thad surprised everyone by coming up while holding hands and both telling Blaine that they had been in very similar situations, Thad was assaulted and Trent had been through therapy for depression caused in part by bullying over his weight and sexual preferences. Thad explained that his assault had only been an attempted rape, but that he had been terrified of anything remotely sexual for quite some time after the incident which had happened when he was a freshman. His therapy and recently formed relationship with Trent had finally gotten him to see that he was free to accept that side of himself and that not everyone would want to hurt him if they were attracted to him. Trent explained that his depression had been managed by therapy and medication but his relationship with Thad was starting to help him realize his worth as a person which he had been lacking. Blaine listened to his friends with tears running down his cheeks and when they finished their explanations, he pulled them both into tight hugs and they made a deal to meet up and talk more. Kurt hugged both boys and told them to feel free to contact him in New York if they wanted to or if they just needed another friend. He’d always had a soft spot for Trent because other than Blaine, he was the first of the Warbler’s to befriend him when he had come to Dalton.

Finn, Puck and Lauren came over together and all pulled Blaine into a group hug which seemed to shock Blaine more than anything so far that night. He had never really been close with any of these three, but they all offered support and a place to stay if he needed, a shoulder to cry on and again fists to pound Eli into a pasty bit of goo for what he’d done to their friend. 

Wes plopped himself down beside Kurt and Blaine while they were still talking with the last of the New Directions members and put a soothing hand on Blaine’s shoulder which brought a smile to Kurt’s face. Wesley had always seemed to think of himself as an honorary older brother. He had graduated the year before Kurt, but had stayed in touch with the majority of the Warbler’s who had been in attendance around the time Kurt had been there as well as keeping tabs through the Warbler’s Council on what was going on with his choir. He gave him a gentle smile before he pulled Blaine back against his chest to cuddle there as the others were walking back to their seats. He made a show of loudly clearing his throat and Kurt could almost see his fingers twitching for the gavel that had been practically glued to his hand while he was the leader of the Warbler’s. “I would like to say something that I hope everyone knows, but just to make it clear to all that are here in any form of attendance, including our computer attendees. There have been many personal and private things shared here and there may yet be more. You have all agreed to not speak of Blaine’s secrets, but I would hope that you all know that this courtesy should extend to all of those who have spoken up today. There are few who know about a good number of these confidences and if someone starts telling tales, we will know where to look for the ones who couldn’t manage to keep their mouth’s closed. Are we all on the same page?” After receiving nods from everyone he smiled and squeezed Blaine once more before moving back to his seat.

David was still sitting by himself looking very conflicted and horribly guilty. Blaine got up and walked over to his friend and knelt in front of him before grabbing his hands and making him look at his face. “Are you alright, David?”

“No, I’m really not. I’d like to talk to you and Kurt alone if I could. When this is over, of course I want you to be able to finish with everyone else first.”

“That’s fine, but let me say this before anything else; you are not to blame for this. I can see it on your face that you are taking responsibility, but no one is responsible but me and the guy who did this to me.” Even though he nodded his acceptance of Blaine’s statement, he could tell that he really didn’t’ believe this at all. Blaine got up and returned to his seat and gave Kurt a questioning look as if to say, ‘What’s next?’

Kurt gave him a small kiss on the forehead and said, “Okay guys, we just have the Skype people left unless you have something Ms. Pillsbury?” She shook her head and just said that she would speak with him later in private. Kurt looked towards the computers and asked Blaine who first to which he pointed to Mike and Mercedes. “Alright, next up will be Mercedes and then Mike. After they get their say then we’ll have Rachel and lastly Cooper. Let me remind you all that you are limited to five questions or minutes whichever comes first.” Kurt nodded to Mercedes after turning up the volume on the laptop a little more.

“Blaine, sweetie, I know that I don’t know you as well as a lot of the other people there, but you’re still my boy and I will do whatever you need me to do. Kurt has all my contact information so get it from him and don’t you dare hesitate to get in touch with me if you need to or just want to talk or whatever.”

“Thanks Mercedes, I really appreciate that, but I really invited you here more for Kurt. I love and trust you, but I know that you are one of his best friends and I’m sure that he’s going to need someone to talk to or bitch about me to so I was hoping that you could help take care of him while everyone else helps take care of me. Do you mind?” Blaine leaned into the hug he was getting from Kurt while waiting for a response.

“I don’t mind at all honey. I know that you both are gonna need as many friends as you can get to help make it through this so you can both count on me. Remember that, white boy! I know you keep everything inside until it explodes, but Blaine is gonna need you to be strong so let some of us help you too.”

Kurt gave his friend a fond smile and replied, “Thanks ‘Cedes! I love you and will definitely take you up on that offer. I’m still going to make sure Blaine has all of your contact info though. It’s nice to have someone like you in your corner. I know that from firsthand experience,” he said before blowing her a kiss and giggling. “Mike, you’re up.”

Mike looked a little shell-shocked. Kurt wasn’t surprised. You hear all the time about women being raped or molested in some way, but you really don’t hear about it with men. It seemed to really take a toll on the sensitive dancer and he spoke slowly, but with growing confidence and compassion, “Blaine dude, I barely know what to say for this situation. I’m going with what others have said, I love you like a brother and would gladly kick this guy’s ass if you want us to. I will do whatever I can to help you, just ask. I know I’m not in as often as some of the others, but if you want to get together to talk or hang out, just let me know. I’m not really sure what to say here other than I’m seriously sorry that something like this happened to you, man. Is there anything you need?”

Blaine gave a wide grin to his rambling friend and shook his head, “No, not right now, but I will definitely take you up on the offer to get together when you’re in town. I miss dancing with you. You and Brit always made it so difficult to keep up with you, but that made it even more fun to try. Thanks for everything, Mike. I really appreciate it.”

Kurt squeezed Blaine tightly once more before standing up and moving to the second computer. “I will say this once and only once, Rachel and Cooper. This is a serious situation that we understand and don’t need explained to us. We do not need jokes, quips or anything of the sort. Personal experiences, words of wisdom or encouragement and offers of love and assistance will be the only acceptable comments to be made here today. Anything else will be a swift disconnect from the call and kick in the ass when we next see you. Is this understood?” Upon seeing nods from both Rachel and Cooper, he made one more comment, “I will also repeat that this will be one at a time and you will not speak over each other. You are limited to five minutes or questions just like everyone else. Is this also understood?” Nods again. “Alright, we are starting with Rachel. I am turning the volume up on the computer since Skype is stupid and doesn’t let you mute anyone other than yourself.”

Rachel looked as if she were about to vibrate right out of her chair and her eyes were still streaming tears. “Blaine, I knew that something more had happened than what you originally said. This wasn’t like you and when he had time to think about it, Kurt knew this as well. You are such a good person and I hope that you know that. If you don’t, then we will all help remind you of that fact so that we can get our bouncy little ball of sunshine back.” Her words were shaky due to the tears, but still came through clear as day. She knew the real Blaine and would be happy to help him find his way back to remembering that. “I promise to help take care of Kurt in New York and do whatever you need me to do for you. I love you just as much as I love Kurt and the rest of the glee club because you are my family and I want you to remember that and take comfort in the fact that I know I’m not the only one that feels like this. If you need other adults to talk to, remember that my dads are great to talk to and would be able to understand a lot of what you might be going through with the problems of being gay in Ohio. If you’d like it, I can make sure Kurt gives you their numbers before he leaves. Oh and by the way, I also promise not to say a word of this to anyone, especially Brody since you don’t know him very well yet. If you feel he should know at any point then I will let you tell him as much or little as you think is appropriate.” Sniffling loudly, she winked and gave Blaine a sly smile before ending her five minutes with, “And just so you know, I plan on giving Kurt the bone-crushing hug that I would be giving you right now if I were there.”

Everyone laughed, knowing how Rachel was about telling people she was about to hug them before actually doing it. This just felt more and more like old times with friends and it was already helping soothe Blaine’s nerves which had been so raw and exposed after telling his story to all of the people present. After a short chuckle, he replied, “That’s alright. I’ve already got offers for the same treatment from several others here for when Kurt leaves. He’ll need some hugs and cuddles too. Just make sure to take good care of my man while I’m not there. He’s worth more than gold to me.” This caused said man to tackle Blaine in a huge hug and kiss, once again setting off the laughter in the room.

“Okay Coop. I know you’ve been dying to say something so here’s your chance. Don’t forget that I will be faster than the Flash in disconnecting you if you say anything to upset Blaine.” Kurt gave his best bitch glare and half of those in the room gave a shiver in response to the intensity. No one in their right mind would go against this man if they could help it.

Cooper Anderson was always one for long and dramatic speeches or jokes to cover any real emotions he may have, but this time he could barely contain the rage he felt at the thought of someone hurting his baby brother. The man who spoke was not the polished actor everyone had seen up to this point; he was the devastated older brother. “Blainey… I don’t know what to say here and I know that’s a first for me. First off, I’m going to say that I love you more than anyone in the world, even if I don’t say it enough. It’s really a good thing I’m on the other side of the country because I would drag that little fucker’s address out of you and pay him a visit that he wouldn’t forget. I’ve really only got a couple of questions for you but I will be seeing you within a couple of weeks to check up on you, okay Bumble Bee?”

Blaine was doing everything he could to keep himself from sobbing and throwing himself at the computer. He wasn’t used to seeing this side of Cooper and he hadn’t called him that nickname since he was in first grade. “I love you too Coop! I’m not telling you his name or address so don’t try to get it out of me, but I really appreciate you offering violence to avenge my honor.” He laughed while remembering playing the damsel in distress to Coop’s Knight more times than he could remember when he was little and this was a common quote in their games. “Now what did you want to ask, Oh Valiant Sir Cooper?”

Tears finally started trickling down Cooper’s face at the silly name that they always used but he was able to calm himself quicker than he expected and asked, “Firstly, have you told mom and dad? Secondly, are you and Kurt back together or are you just friends so I know how to act around him? And lastly, when is your spring break and would you and Kurt like to come out here to spend a week with me in Cali?”

Both Kurt and Blaine looked shocked at the last question. They looked at each other with one of their glances that conveyed an entire conversation in silence before Blaine answered his brother, “No, I haven’t told mom and dad yet. They aren’t due back in town until sometime next weekend, I think and Burt and Carole have already offered to host a dinner for the three of us so that it will be easier to talk about. Yes, Kurt and I are back together but we are starting over so that we can work out any issues and get me through any freak outs I may have for any kind of intimacy. And lastly, I’m not sure if we would be able to come out for spring break, but mine is the week before and two days after Easter. Kurt and I will talk about it and let you know. Is that okay?”

“Yeah Bumble Bee, that’s fine. Congratulations to you guys on getting back together because you two are like an epic love story just waiting to be written. Don’t lose sight of that again. I think it would help both of you through just about anything that might get thrown at you. I want to make it clear that you both are to call or text me as soon as anything important happens or if you need anything at all. I can even authorize stuff for insurance in case you need something like that with your therapist, but I think she should still have all that from before. Promise me, guys! For once in my fabulous life, I am being completely serious.”

Blaine finally lost it again at the tone in his brother’s voice. He knew that Cooper loved him and felt like it was his job to take care of him since their parents never really understood how to **be** parents to either boy. Sniffling and wiping away a few more tears, he replied, “I love you so much Coop! Thank you for everything and I promise that you will hear about anything that happens. I already saw Dr. Pierce yesterday and she does still have all the information she needed from when mom made me go see her before transferring schools, but it’s good to know that I don’t have to wait to hear back from mom and dad if I need anything.” He spat out bitterly, “God only knows when I would hear back from them if they were doing something _important_!” 

“Don’t do that to yourself Blainey! You know that you and I both are worth ten of them so just make sure that anything you have to fill out has me listed as your contact, okay? I meant it before when I said I was coming out in a couple of weeks, so don’t forget about it. I plan on having a long chat with our lovely parents to let them know what a shitty job they are doing with taking care of you and that I will be more than happy to help if they need any more assistance. I can’t believe that they never noticed anything was going on with you when they were in the same house as you. Don’t worry though. I can see your expression from here and I know what I’m doing. I’ve had eight years more than you to find exactly how far I can push them before they blow up. I love you, Bumble Bee. Don’t you forget it!”

Kurt tightened his arms around Blaine who was now quietly crying on his shoulder. “Cooper, you are amazing and I am ashamed to say that I was terrified of how you would react. Thank you for everything you said and I know that Blaine will love getting to spend some time with you when you’re here. Be careful with what you say to your mom and dad though. Your mom might be more receptive than your dad. He still seems to have problems accepting that Blaine is gay and has a boyfriend. Finding out all of this may just cause him to be even more of an ass and try to push off blame on Blaine and if that is the case, you may be an orphan because there would be a line of people waiting to kick his ass. Also, thanks for including me in the invitation to California. We will get back to you in a couple of days after we talk things out.” Giving him a fond grin, Kurt adds, “You are a good man Cooper Anderson. Who would have guessed?”

“Hey! I resemble that remark!” He said laughing along with everyone else. “You’re family Kurt. I had to add you into the invitation or I’d have to listen to Blainey whining the whole time he was here!”

After a few more minutes of the good natured bantering, Burt stood up and got everyone’s attention and said, “Okay everybody, I think that this was a good day but you all need to start thinking about getting the hell out of here.” Burt’s smile let everyone know that he wasn’t upset but meant what he was saying. They could also see the toll that the day’s activities had on Blaine who looked like he was about to either break or fall asleep where he sat leaning against Kurt. 

He smiled at Burt for his attempt at wrangling all the teens and spoke in a voice that let everyone know that he was stronger than he looked, “I want to thank you all again. This was exactly what I needed today and I can’t even begin to tell you how much I appreciate what you have said, done and offered to do. You guys are the best friends a guy could hope for and I love you all. I just want to remind you McKinley guys that Kitty isn’t here today. There is a reason for that, mainly because I don’t trust her one little bit. I’ve heard the things she has said to all of us, but especially Marley and I don’t want her having ammunition to use against me.”

Kurt stood up and stretched before grabbing Blaine’s hand to help him get up to show their guests out before saying, “Thanks for behaving guys. I know there are some of us who really don’t get along but you pulled together and were there for Blaine. If anybody needs anything or needs to let me know anything that is going on when I’m back in New York, please feel free to get in touch with me anytime. If you need any of my contacts, just let me know or get them from Blaine.”

Everyone began making their exits while David made his way to sit in a quiet corner waiting for a chance to talk that came about ten minutes later. The other Warbler’s were waiting for him in the car warming up for the long drive back to Westerville. Blaine and Kurt made their way over to their friend and both noticed the drawn look on his face, as if the weight of the world was on his shoulders. They sat and Blaine quickly took his friend’s hand before saying once again, “David, this wasn’t your fault. Please don’t blame yourself for what happened.”

With tears shining brightly in his dark brown eyes, David shocked both boys by asking, “Was this guy Eli? And before you say again that you won’t tell me who it was, I need you both to know that I found out a few months ago that he has done this kind of thing before, if it was him.”

Kurt looked as if he could kill someone just with a glance when he spoke for both of them, “What do you mean, David. He’s raped other guys before and you introduced Blaine to him anyway without saying anything?” Blaine put a soothing hand on Kurt’s knee while looking at David for answers to the questions.

“I’m so very sorry for ever meeting him, much less introducing him to you. But Kurt, you have to believe me when I say that I had no idea about him when I introduced him to any of my friends. This was actually a couple of years ago and to be honest, I didn’t even know that you were still in contact with him Blaine. If I did then I would have let you know what I heard as soon as I found out. Let me explain. Just after Thanksgiving break, I was talking with a friend who had been out for several weeks prior. I didn’t know why he was out but he still seemed like he was having some problems, but not anything physical. I tried to get him to confide in me and he finally did, but I wasn’t ready for what I heard. His story was so similar to yours Blaine, but this guy is straight. He had just broken up with his girlfriend and was really looking for some company and he knew Eli from school so thought he could trust him. Obviously he couldn’t. He did go to the police, but his parents decided that going to court would have been too much for him so they dropped the charges. He heard his lawyer talking with his parents, just before things were completed and apparently he wasn’t the first one to report this and then drop their case. Eli’s dad is somebody pretty important from what he heard and had bullied the others to drop the charges. Are you going to report this? Because I think that you might be able to get a few other guys to go in as well and you know Seb’s dad is the state’s attorney. I think with his influence that you might get this guy behind bars. Please think about it and talk with Seb as well as your parents because this guy is going to do this to anyone who doesn’t willingly come to his bed. I’ll talk to my friend if you decide that you want to go through with it.”

Blaine and Kurt were both sitting with looks of horror and disgust at David’s story. They could see how much this was affecting David and wanted to make sure that he knew that they didn’t blame him for anything. “David,” Blaine started quietly. “I know that you would have told me immediately what you heard if you knew that I was still in contact with Eli, but to be honest, this had already happened by the time you heard your friend’s story. It happened to me in September and that was months before you knew anything. I would never blame you for just knowing someone that went to our school and introducing us. I also wouldn’t expect you to immediately tell me a story like this without knowing I had been in contact with him because you aren’t a gossip like so many of the other Warbler’s are.” This got a small grin out of David, who knew that the Warbler’s were worse about gossiping than a group of little old ladies. “You came to me with information that could help me as soon as you found out about it and we more than appreciate your loyalty, but you need to stop feeling guilty. Please don’t let anyone else know who it was before we decide what to do about this, okay? I know you want to help, but if we do decide to try and press charges, it would look bad if a gang of prep school boys decided to beat the shit out of him before giving all the details to the guys from McKinley and they did the same thing before Santana and Lauren decided to castrate him just for the fun of it.”

This finally got all three boys laughing again at that mental picture and seemed to ease a little of David’s guilt. Kurt jumped in quickly to clear the air as well, “I want to apologize for over-reacting when you mentioned this, David. This has been a very emotional couple of days and it had a target for the rage I’m feeling about what happened and I jumped to conclusions that I knew were not true. Please forgive me.”

David stood and clapped Kurt of the back before pulling Blaine into a one-armed hug and said, “There was never anything to forgive Kurt. I would have reacted the same way if I were in your shoes. Please let me know if either of you need anything, but I should really be going before I lose my ride home.”

They all walked David out to the car and said another quick goodbye to the Westerville contingent of Blaine’s little army of supporters. They discussed what had been shared over the course of the day and plans for what still needed to be done. Kurt had cancelled his train ticket back to New York and his father had bought him a plane ticket back on the following Sunday so that he would have a week in Lima to help Blaine take care of all of the little details that still needed to be done. They talked about setting up a coffee or Skype date with Sebastian and his father so they could see what could be done at this point and then decided that they needed to start cleaning up. It would be busy work that would help keep their minds off the things yet to come. After walking back into the dining room, they were shocked to find the tables mostly cleared of food and all of the drinks moved to the kitchen already. The kitchen was full of family and all of the leftovers so they decided to fix dinner for themselves and eat before trying to relax for the night. 

Carole made plates for both boys, making sure to pile them high with the things she knew they liked and let them know that there were still tons of desserts left as well. She, Burt, Sam and Finn stayed in the kitchen to chat over their early dinner and after the paper plates were quickly tossed out when the food was eaten, they decided to have a movie night. Blaine could pick anything he wanted and they would all sit down together to wind down for the rest of the evening. He picked Music and Lyrics because it was funny and had catchy music that they could sing along with before Carole and Kurt picked out Mamma Mia. Everyone sang along and enjoyed each other’s company before making their way to bed for the evening.

Sam was sleeping in the spare room after Finn and Burt had moved all the boxes away from the bed from Kurt’s move to New York and Sam’s semi-permanent residence with them while in Lima. This left Kurt and Blaine alone in Kurt’s soft as a cloud bed snuggling tightly together and taking comfort in being so close once again. Kurt kissed Blaine’s forehead, nose and then placed a gentle kiss on his lips. Releasing a quiet sigh of contentment, he asked, “So how are you doing? I know today must have been hard for you because it was hard for me to just hear you tell that all again. Then add in what David told us to everything else and I think my brain is mush.”

Burrowing closer into his love’s arms, Blaine gave a sad smile before replying, “I’m okay, I think. It was really hard to tell everyone what happened, but seeing their reactions? I just can’t even start to convey how much that helped. I was so afraid for so long that everyone would hate me because of what I did and when you and Sam got so mad at Eli but not me, it made me start thinking that I might be able to get through this. Then after today? I feel as if a pile of bricks has been lifted off of my chest and I can breathe for the first time in months. I still feel like such an idiot that I didn’t see what had really happened and put us all through all of that pain. I don’t know what I would do if I had really lost you for good.” He leaned over and kissed Kurt with all of the passion in him and tried to keep from crying yet again at the thought of losing this man forever.

Kurt kissed back, but pulled away before things could get too out of hand and touched his forehead to the curly head sharing his pillow, “Sweetheart, I don’t think that could have happened. We love each other way too much to ever let one of us get away for good. I would never have admitted it to anyone, but I was miserable while we were apart. I tried to date, but it never felt right. Even though we weren’t together at the time, I still felt like I was cheating on you and when I was by myself, I felt like a piece of me was missing. Rachel and I were talking about this on Thursday morning, actually. She said that we fit together like two puzzle pieces and that was why she thought it was so sweet that the first song you sang to me was Teenage Dream. We really are each other’s missing puzzle piece.”

Tears were shining brightly in beautiful hazel eyes, but this time they were happy tears. Blaine knew that with the support of Kurt, their friends and family that he would make it through all of the hellish things that were still yet to come and make it through as a stronger person. 

**~KB~KB~KB~  
** _Lima, Ohio, 2/4/2013  
_ After their traumatic weekend of confessions and family meetings, Blaine had been expecting for things to go just as well with his parents. Once again, he had been disappointed by the two people who should have loved and supported him unconditionally. It took two and a half weeks and Cooper’s trip back to Ohio to finally set up the dinner at the Hudson-Hummel residence. Dinner was lovely but the company was not. His father seemed to only see the middle-class home and people that were in attendance at the meal and not the fact that one of those people happened to be a Senator. He was barely polite and his mother was mostly silent. After the meal was done, Cooper convinced Blaine to bring up their planned conversation. This did not go over well and Mr. Anderson all but accused Blaine of lying about the events of the evening with Eli. Burt and Carole both were irate over the treatment of one of their boys and quickly started yelling only to be silenced by Cooper.

“Dad, you are embarrassing yourself and the rest of this family. You should know that Blaine would never lie about something like this and if you can’t see that then I feel that I have no choice but to take custody of Blaine for the remainder of the school year. I’ve already talked with Burt and Carole and they have agreed to let Blaine stay here, but you and mother will be paying support payments to them for the added expense of another teen-age boy in their home. You will also continue to give him money for his personal expenses like gas and clothing as well as paying his insurance and medical expenses until he leaves for college. He has received a full scholarship to NYADA based on his grades and excellent extra-curriculars so the only thing that you will be responsible for will be his apartment and living expenses. Do you have any questions?”

Sputtering to speak, his father asked, “Who the hell do you think you are, speaking to me like that Cooper? I am your father, not the other way around. I will not have you…”

Cooper quickly cut him off by saying, “I will not have you bitching about anything else, so save it. I raised Blaine practically on my own until I left for college and then he raised himself from that point on. He never had anyone to look after him and you and mom did nothing more than leave money for him while you ran around doing whatever the fuck it is you do and left him alone in that huge house from the time he was ten. I know how careful you are about appearances, but father dear, what would all of your poncey friends do if they heard all of our dirty laundry laid out in family court? I have everything documented from all of my bank statements over the years as well as Blaine’s and yours. It doesn’t paint a very good picture of you as the picture-perfect loving family that you have tried to pretend we were for all of these years. I doubt that I could do much since Blaine is about to turn 18 but that wouldn’t matter. Your sterling reputation would be ruined. All you have to do is sign a few papers that turn him over to me until the end of the school year and keep doing exactly what you are doing now. Throw money his way when it’s needed and leave him the hell alone. Is that a clearer way of putting things?”

Mr. Anderson looked as if he were about to start blowing steam out of his ears from the redness of his face. He looked like he was struggling to keep his temper in check before he spoke quietly, “Fine. I will pay the equivalent of child-support to these people and continue transferring money to Blaine’s checking account. I want everything of his out of the house no later than next Friday which is the fifteenth. He can keep his car and all of his belongings, but don’t expect anything from us other than what we are being forced to give him. When he leaves for college, I will add an additional $5000 as well as raising the monthly support payments by $500 to what he is now getting directly into his account. Is this acceptable?”

Cooper nodded but Blaine looked as if his world was crumbling, which it seemed like it was. He had expected his father to react badly, but he had never expected this. Obviously, Cooper had though. Tears were falling from his eyes as he quietly spoke to his mother who had yet to speak since dinner had ended, “Mom, aren’t you even going to say anything about this? Why are you doing this to me? I always tried to do everything right. I know that you were disappointed that I’m gay but I thought you had gotten over that a long time ago. Are you really just going to let dad basically throw me out without saying a word?”

Mrs. Anderson raised her eyes to look at her youngest son and he could see how much this was hurting her, but he couldn’t tell what was hurting her until she spoke, “I don’t agree with what he is doing, but you made your choice when you chose this lifestyle, Blaine. You know that I like Kurt, but I can’t understand how you could do this to your father and I. You and your brother are threatening us because you chose to throw yourself around like a common whore and then blame the other boy. I’m ashamed to call you son.” After her last statement, she looked at her husband and said she would be in the car waiting.

Blaine couldn’t take any more and ran to Burt and crawled into his lap like a child needing comforting. Cooper looked sick at what his mother had just said and said as much before asking his father their plans so he and Blaine could avoid them while packing. He was informed that they were on their way to the airport later that night and wouldn’t be back for three weeks which was more than enough time to remove everything of theirs. Cooper nodded and then handed over the paperwork he had along with a pen.

Burt had tried to keep silent after his earlier outburst but he couldn't contain it any longer while he held this man’s son in his lap while he cried over the treatment he was getting from them. “How can you live with yourself? You are so close-minded that you can’t see what an amazing pair of sons you have for all of your prejudices. They are both exceptional young men who believe strongly in doing what is right and only want what they have worked so hard to get. Why is that beneath you? You should be jumping for joy because they are so awesome. I have a gay son who is in college for theater just like Blaine is going to be and I couldn't be more proud of him. Hell, I was proud of him when he was gonna to be going to community college while he waited to reapply to NYADA. I’m even more proud that he took the initiative to move even without school or job and finding one sooner than anyone expected and at an important place like Vogue.com. That means more to me than keeping up appearances. I’m a damned congressman and I am proud to tell anyone who will listen about Kurt. Why can’t you do the same?”

Mr. Anderson looked thoughtful before replying with as much disdain as possible, “I could, but I won’t. I don’t think what he is doing is right and I refuse to have my family pay the price for his selfishness. I will give him his pay-off, but that’s all he will ever get from me. I can’t love something that disgusts me. Now if you will excuse me, I am leaving. Here is the check for this month,” he said after throwing a quickly written check for $5000 down on top of the guardianship papers.

It was a good thing that Kurt was coming in that weekend for Blaine’s birthday otherwise he wouldn’t have made it. He ended up in Dr. Pierce’s office twice and was cuddling with either Sam or Finn every night. Cooper had taken him back to their parent’s house the next day and they started packing up all of Blaine’s things and Cooper had decided that he would do the same thing. He and Blaine had talked on the way there and he was so disgusted with how their parents had treated Blaine that he was going to break ties as well. They called Sebastian, David and Nick to come help pack and made plans for pizza after the heavy lifting. They ended up having the three guys they called as well as Dave and Jeff who came with their boyfriends. With all of the help, it didn’t take long at all to pack up the two bedrooms and music room. They decided to take the majority of the DVDs as well since they had purchased most of them. Wandering through the house after everything was in boxes and packed in the two vehicles to make their way to Burt’s house seemed very strange. They weren’t sure if they should take the pictures or things like the boxes of toys and things from their childhoods that were stored in the attic. In the end, they felt that taking the boxes and dealing with them later would be better than having their parents getting pissed off and throwing everything out just to spite them. They also took several boxes and trunks of things that had belonged to their grandparents, who they had both been quite close to. They took the photo albums, but left several of the photos of Blaine and Cooper together through the years to remind their parents what they were missing by voluntarily losing both of their sons.

For the most part, the boys moved through the packing up quickly. The only uncomfortable moment came when Sebastian was helping in Blaine’s bedroom and accidently ran across his stash of toys and decided to tease Blaine about them. This was originally something he thought would have lightened the mood, but it ended up making Blaine more uncomfortable and almost start crying because he thought that Sebastian was being serious with the taunts. This little incident ended in a quick call to Kurt who screamed at Sebastian until he apologized and agreed to pay for the pizzas. Later that night he also called Kurt to apologize to him as well. He explained how he was just playing with Blaine who took things the wrong way. “I promise that I wasn’t trying to upset him! I didn’t go after him like we usually do, I don’t even remember exactly what I said, but it was a lot tamer than things I said to him while I was trying to get him to go out with me. I thought he would be a little embarrassed but then get a laugh out of the situation. I should have known better than to tease him while we were moving him out of his parent’s house after basically being disowned. I’m such an idiot, Kurt!”

With a loud sigh, Kurt tried to calm Sebastian down, “Don’t worry, Seb. I know you didn’t do it on purpose, but you have to remember what he’s going through before you let your snark out to play. Blaine doesn’t play like you and I do. We talk normally through all of our insults and know how to let it bounce off of us. He’s just not like that. He takes things seriously.”

“I know, but I forgot. I can’t tell you how badly I felt when I saw his face fall and those tears in his eyes. God Kurt, I felt like I’d just run over his puppy and wanted to do anything to make him smile again. How can you do this? I know you love him, but you’re just as big a bitch as I am.”

Laughing at where this conversation was heading, Kurt confided, “I have made more mistakes than you can imagine, but he loves me too so we work through things. He’s the cute and clueless one with signs and hints flying right over that pretty gelled head of his. You and I are different. I still don’t know how he puts up with me, especially when I get in one of my moods. What the hell did I ever do to deserve him, Seb? Before his depression started up again, he was just this cute little puppy with the heart eyes who loved to sing and dance and jump on furniture. I want that boy back!”

Sebastian wasn’t sure how to deal with Kurt crying so he tried to go back to their normal bantering, “Well, I don’t know Gay Face, but I know that I would probably be able to get the smile back on those pretty lips. What do you think?”

With a cute little snort, Kurt came back to his normal self, “I think that you had better keep your paws off of my man, Meerkat. Besides, what would your Bear Cub do if he found out you were trying to get into my hobbit’s pants?”

“Oh, I hadn’t thought of that! Maybe I could get him to play it a little rough. That’s always fun. By the way, on a more serious note, where the fuck did we come up with all of these nicknames? Now that I actually like you, it is exhausting to keep up with them all!”

 **~KB~KB~KB~  
**  
 _Lima, Ohio 7/11/2013 8:45pm_  
Snuggling up to his boyfriend and soon to be roommate, Blaine sighed in happiness at how his life was turning out. The last few months had been very difficult, but things were looking up for him in so many ways. He had graduated with honors from high school, he had a wonderful group of friends who helped support him when he was feeling down and he had his family. His parents may have effectively disowned him, but he had a better family to take their place. Kurt and Cooper had made him realize that even if his biological parents weren’t around he still had everyone in the Hummel-Hudson household who loved him just as much as if he were one of their own. He was so proud to be a part of this family and knowing how much they loved him made him stronger than he ever thought he could be. They, along with his group of tirelessly supportive friends, got him through school, his depression and the short but very intense trial concerning his attack.

Blaine and Kurt had spoken with Sebastian’s father and gotten all of the options about what they could do before finding out that there was a new victim that had gone directly to the emergency room and police after being hurt by Eli. This young man was determined to see his attacker brought to justice and when he found out about Blaine and several others, they suddenly had a very promising case. In the end, there were a total of twelve boys that came forward to participate in the case and because of this and the similarity of the stories from each boy, Eli was very quickly found guilty and sentenced to prison. The speed of the trial and sentencing was partially due to Mr. Smythe’s involvement but mostly due to the fact that there were two boys who had been under 15 when they had been assaulted. It was the proverbial final nail in Eli’s coffin and brought peace of mind to all of the victims and their families to know he would not be hurting anyone else for a very long time.

Blaine was doing well with his therapy and no longer needed to be medicated. He and Kurt had spent as much time together as possible while in the same city and made concentrated efforts to make time for each other when they were apart. Their relationship was growing stronger every day and they were back to being the couple everyone aspired to be like. They had their fights and disagreements like any other couple, but worked through their problems quickly because they both knew how much happier they were when they were together.

With the support checks that his parents were still providing while he is in college, he and Kurt were able to afford a very nice apartment in a much nicer section of the city near NYADA while Rachel had decided to move in with Finn, who had recently moved to New York and was preparing for classes to start at NYU where he was planning to study education and music so that he could be like his mentor Mr. Schuester and hopefully start influencing young minds through music and dance. He and Kurt were leaving tomorrow morning along with Burt, Carole and Finn to get their things moved from Ohio to their new apartment in New York. Everyone was looking forward to spending time together in the city and even though it would be sad to leave some people behind, the majority of the New Directions as well as a few Warbler’s were New York-bound for school so they would all have loads of company while getting used to their new schools and homes.

Blaine felt Kurt stirring beside him and leaned in to place a soft kiss on his neck before whispering, “Good morning my love. Are you ready to start the next chapter of our lives together?”

Stretching around and pulling Blaine into a huge hug, Kurt placed a quick kiss on his cheek and smiled brilliantly, “Of course I am! I’ve been waiting for this moment for so long and I finally get you to myself for more than a few days. How about you? Are you ready to get out of Small Town, Ohio and go to live in the big city?”

“More than I can ever say. I know I’ll miss all of our friends and family, but I finally realize that I’m not alone and even if I am temporarily that I’ve got the best life ever because you are in it. Now let’s go get ready before we end up making everyone late leaving and have to listen to their teasing about _why_ we were late.”

Blaine quickly jumped out of bed, avoiding the playful swat Kurt was aiming for his rear. He laughed while making his way to the bathroom and started to get nervous about what he was planning for their first night in their new home. Would this be the right time? Was it too soon? What would Kurt say? What if he said no? While he was lost in thought, he missed Kurt slipping into the bathroom and getting into the shower with him. He jumped when he felt soft hands running through his curls, but soon leaned back into the tight embrace while turning for a kiss. “Well, this is unexpected, Mr. Hummel. I thought that you were a gentleman.”

“Oh please, like we haven’t seen each other naked before!” Kurt said while laughing. They quickly washed up and he leaned over to grab the shampoo and started massaging it into Blaine’s scalp as he continued, “We don’t have time for anything other than an actual shower but I know how much you love to have your hair washed so I thought I would give you a little treat before we’re stuck in a moving truck with Finn for the entire day. I just wanted a little alone time.”

A soft moan of pleasure escaped while Blaine enjoyed the heavenly scalp massage. “Never mind, pretend I didn’t say anything and please never stop doing that. I don’t know where you learned how to do this but I would like to send that person flowers and candy!”

A sad smile graced his beautiful face, “My mom used to do this for me when I was little. I practiced on my dad too.” Quietly, he stepped out of the shower and dried off with a fluffy, white towel as Blaine stood there frowning. He hadn’t meant to make Kurt sad. But almost as if he knew what was going through the curly head, Kurt turned and said, “Don’t worry, that was a happy memory. Let’s get going, okay sweetie?”

Blaine’s smile slowly returned and he gave his love a quick kiss before jumping out of the shower to finish getting ready for their long trip. He knew that Rachel was supposed to have stocked their fridge and pantry, but he was a little worried about this since she was an on-again, off-again vegan. It should be interesting, but they were all planning on take-out due to the long journey and the promise of a stressful evening unloading the truck. 

**~KB~KB~KB~  
**  
Hours later, after all of the driving, arguing and unloading was done, everyone gathered in the comfy living room of the [new apartment](http://www.polyvore.com/archstone_kips_bay_apartments_floor/thing?context_id=86327120&context_type=collection&id=86346841) eating from the large assortment of take-out on the coffee table. There was Thai, Chinese, pizza, Italian, Indian and Ethiopian. They had decided on the buffet after coming to the door of their home and finding menus for all of these places and decided to try a little of each to see what they would have to choose from in the coming months while laughing at each other making faces or moaning in delight. The general consensus was that they would continue ordering Indian, Italian and Ethiopian but the others would need to be either investigated further or an alternative found. Especially Chinese since the food was inedible even to Finn of all people. This was the first time that Finn had refused to eat anything other than certain vegetables or Rachel’s vegan dinners since he was nine.

Just before all of the guests were about to leave for the night, Kurt noticed something a little odd. Blaine was talking with his father and just before he said goodbye for the night, he was handed a small box before getting pulled into one of Burt’s Papa Bear hugs. Kurt smiled and finished saying goodnight to Carole, Finn and Rachel before walking over to join the two most important men in his life. “Dad, I promise that we will take care of each other, if that’s what you were saying. It almost looked like you were giving advice before he went into battle or something.”

Burt stepped back from his hug with Blaine and pulled Kurt into a similar hug. “I know that, but I’m still going to worry about my boys. You know that! Now, Carole and I will probably be spending more time in DC now that all of you boys are away but just remember that we’re still going to be there for you if you need us. Besides, we’re actually closer there than we are in Ohio.” Stepping back with a smile, “Now you boys get some sleep because we’re going to be here insanely early tomorrow to get this place unpacked and set up for you guys, okay?”

Both boys beamed at Burt before nodding and saying almost in unison, “Yes sir!”

Once they were alone in their new apartment, Kurt leaned close to Blaine and kissed his cheek before whispering, “We made sure the bed was set up before everybody left. Will you come lay down with me?”

A shiver went down Blaine’s spine. He smiled at his love and kissed him quickly before moving him in the direction of the bedroom, “I just need to grab something out of my bag and I’ll be right there.”

Kurt winked at him and went to the bedroom. Blaine stood smiling for just a moment before he ran to his messenger bag that he’d had with him the entire trip and grabbed several things from it and after a short detour to the kitchen for two glasses and the bottle of champagne that Burt and Carole had left for them, he made his way back. His nerves were getting the better of him and he had to stop just before opening the bedroom door to take a couple of deep breaths and collect his thoughts. This was going to be perfect and he didn’t need to worry so much. He repeated that phrase at least ten times and then he was finally calmer and able to do what he had wanted to do for months now.

Kurt was sitting on the bed in his midnight blue silk pajamas waiting for Blaine to join him. He was just as nervous as Blaine but didn’t realize that it was for the same reason. When his beautiful boyfriend entered the room, their eyes met and neither could look away. The memories of a long ago meeting on a crowded staircase made them both smile wistfully and Blaine made his way quickly to join Kurt and give him a sweet kiss before sitting down his loot on the nightstand. Kurt’s raised eyebrow made Blaine giggle and then say, “Your dad and Carole wanted to leave this for us to celebrate our first night living together as a couple in our first home. I thought it was sweet. I would like to do something first though. Is that okay?”

Kurt looked at him with curious eyes, but nodded in agreement and then added that he had something he would like to do as well, but Blaine should go first. Smiling brilliantly, Blaine sat on the bed beside him and took his hand “Kurt, you have done more for me in the short time that we have known each other than anyone else in the world. You have helped me through loneliness, ego, depression, figuring out who I am when we are apart as well as together. You put up with my completely dysfunctional family and adore my crazy brother even when I sometimes want to kill him. I don’t know how you do it, but I will be eternally grateful that I have you in my life. I know that I would never have made it through the last year without you and even though there were ups and downs, I like to think that there have been more ups, especially recently. You make me happier than I have ever thought possible and I hope that I have done the same for you.” Kurt listens to the speech Blaine is giving and wondered what he was gearing up for, but smiled encouragingly. After taking another deep breath and looking deeply into Kurt’s eyes, Blaine continued, “You are my best friend, the love of my life and my soul mate. I know that even though we are young that I will love you until my dying day and I hope that you feel the same way about me. That being said,” He dipped into his pocket and retrieved a small, square box and looked back at Kurt with tears threatening to start at any moment, “Kurt Hummel, will you do me the honor of becoming my husband after we both graduate? Because I know your dad would kill me if we did anything sooner!”

Kurt was stunned yet thrilled at what Blaine had done. Giggling, Kurt reached under his pillow and pulled out another small box and looked back at Blaine who was now watching him with worried eyes at his lack of an answer. Staring lovingly into the beautiful honeyed eyes of his love, Kurt replied, “I would love to marry you. And just so you know, I was going to ask the same thing.” They kissed desperately and then Kurt made a grabby-hands gesture towards the ring box. More laughter ensued after exchanging ring boxes and finding that the rings inside were very similar with the exception of the color and metal. Kurt had gotten Blaine a brushed [titanium band](http://www.polyvore.com/blue_anodized_titanium_band/thing?context_id=86327120&context_type=collection&id=86180537) with a cyan blue infinity symbol running the entirety of the ring. Kurt had seen it and it reminded him of everything about Blaine, his love of color and fun, his beauty and his unending faith in Kurt. Blaine had found a lovely [tungsten band](http://www.polyvore.com/8mm_mens_tungsten_ring_wedding/thing?context_id=86327120&context_type=collection&id=86341647) that was gunmetal gray in color with an infinity pattern as well. The ring was beautiful and elegant just like his Kurt and he knew that it would look stunning on his long, slender fingers. They put their rings on each other and then snuggled together against the huge pillows at the top of their new bed. Both men were a little in awe of the events of the evening because while they had always been in sync with one another, this was a little much for them. They each told about how they had found their rings and what had drawn them to them and this made things make sense in both of their minds. 

Later that night, after sharing a glass of champagne and more cuddling and kisses, they hugged closer and Blaine spoke directly into Kurt’s ear, “I had one more surprise for tonight that I’ve been thinking about for a while now. If you would like to, I think that I’m finally ready to make love.” Feeling the shock tense Kurt’s body, he pulled back so that they could look at each other and he could show his sincerity. “We have been moving very slowly and I think that we are closer than we’ve ever been. I know that I feel safer and more secure in your arms than I do any other place in the world and I want to share that with you. I also, want you to remind me what it is supposed to be like. My last experience with sex was violent and unwanted, but I know that with you it will be the exact opposite. You are always so tender and caring with me, even if things get a little rough,” he adds with a wink and silly smile. “You show with each touch that you love and cherish me and I think that it would be the perfect ending to this wonderful day as well as the best start to our new life that I can imagine. So, what do you think? Would you make love to me?”

Kurt had tears streaming down his face at Blaine’s admission. He knew that this bothered Blaine, but to have him ask him to replace the bad memories with good ones in this way was more than he could take. He leaned over and pressed a passionate kiss on Blaine’s lips and pulled him close. “Yes, I would love to make love to you. I want you to only remember me and the beautiful things we share together.” Kurt smiled and quickly pulled Blaine in for another mind-blowing kiss and his hands started moving over Blaine’s shoulders, down his arms and ended twining their fingers together. They spend the rest of the night worshiping each other. They made love, dozed happily together and woke up again for more. They enjoyed every second of their time together and knew that this most recent step forward in their relationship would draw them even closer than they had already been.

 **~KB~KB~KB~  
**  
The next morning, Finn and Rachel were the first to arrive and when he saw both Kurt and Blaine appeared to be slightly uncomfortable, Finn blurted, “I’m confused, why do both of you look like you’re walking funny? Don’t you usually just have like one “guy” and one “girl” in the relationship?”

Both men turned a brilliant shade of red, looked at each other then burst into hysterical laughter while Rachel went on to explain in entirely too much detail about how they were both men and the differences between a top, a bottom and a switch. Kurt and Blaine tried their best to tune her out while watching Finn’s horrified expression as his girlfriend explained the mechanics of gay sex and how his brother and boyfriend apparently did it, but still had a difficult time muffling their giggling. They made a huge brunch since they knew that Burt and Carole would be arriving soon. They had both decided that they wanted to wait to tell everyone about their engagement until everybody was together. They got a nice surprise when Burt and Carole showed up with Sam, Artie, Santana, Tina and Mike. All of them were in town getting their apartments set up for when school started and thought they could help with doing the same for their friends. Carole brought a huge box of crepes from The Crepe Truck which they had passed on the way to Kurt and Blaine’s and after adding this to the already large amount of food prepared, everyone dug in while chatting and catching up. When everyone was pleasantly full, the leftovers were quickly cleared away and Kurt stood at the table and got everyone’s attention. He grabbed Blaine’s hand and then smiled at all of their friends and family, “We have some news for everyone.”

Finn could be heard mumbling, “I hope to Grilled Cheesus that it’s not the news _I_ got this morning!”

Kurt glared playfully at his brother before continuing, “Last night Blaine and I had a wonderful night in our new home and toasted with the bottle of champagne we were given by my parents, thanks by the way! But we wanted to share with you all another reason that we were celebrating.” Looking shyly at Blaine, they both dropped hands and slipped on their engagement rings from their pockets and at Kurt’s small nod, they both held out their hands to show everyone. It took only a moment for squeals and shouts to fill the room and then the couple was bombarded with hugs and kisses from everyone asking for details. They shared the story and everyone laughed but no one was surprised at the similarities of the rings or the plans from the two men.

Tina was the first to speak up and voiced the opinions of the majority of the people at the table, “Guys, that was a beautiful story and I’m honestly surprised that you’ve waited this long, but it was a perfect time for you both. New beginnings have been a really important theme in your whole relationship but this one is just amazing. You have been through so much but you came out stronger than ever and now you can show anyone who asks or happens to see. I can’t tell you how happy I am for you, but I will say that I expect a damned invitation because I know that it will be the wedding of the century with you two planning it!”

Burt spoke next, “Boys, I couldn’t possibly be any more proud of you than I already am. I know that you two are the real deal because of one simple thing. Whenever someone mentions Kurt’s name, Blaine’s face starts beaming. When Blaine’s name comes up, Kurt smiles like I haven’t seen since before his mom died. I’ll admit that when Blaine asked for my permission to propose to Kurt, I told him no because I thought he meant now and not in the future. I think that when you both decided to wait until you were done with school you made the best possible decision and I officially rescind any objections I had. You two were made for each other and after four years of living together, I’m sure that you guys will know perfectly well how to deal with the day to day bullshit that comes from being a couple and marriage will only make things better. I’m gonna say this now though, because I know it will happen. There will be fights, arguments, temper tantrums and screaming. Blaine you might even get upset once in a while,” he said while winking at his outraged son. “Just remember this, you love each other. You guys are way too alike to get along all of the time, but just remember how much you love each other and you can move mountains to get back to where you need to be.”

More hugs were shared and the chatting went on for a while, but soon everyone was helping move boxes into their proper rooms and things were unpacked after the furniture delivery around eleven. At one-thirty, when everyone was just about at a stopping point before lunch, the doorbell rang. Kurt was in the kitchen so he ran over to answer it. The person staring at him with a huge smile then a “Sshhh!” signal was a complete shock, but he knew that Blaine would be ecstatic. He grabbed his hand and led him to the den which was being turned into a music room. Peeping around the door to make sure he was still there, Kurt called, “Look what I just found!”

Blaine’s head shot up to see what Kurt was talking about and saw his brother Cooper standing in the doorway, eyes twinkling with mischief and love. Blaine shouted his name and ran to give him a huge hug before pulling away and asking why he was there. “I’ve got some great news for you guys and I couldn’t wait to share it so I decided to hop on a plane to see you and maybe help out with the new place.”

“I’m so happy to see you! It’s been too long. I got used to seeing you at least once a month at first and now it’s been almost two. So what’s the good news?”

Laughing at Blaine’s puppy-like enthusiasm, he decided to put him out of his misery, “Well Bumble Bee, do you remember me telling you about that audition I had for the show about the FBI guy and the ex-con? I got the part of the ex-con! And guess where it films? Here in New York! I’m going to be moving here next month to start filming and they are expecting it to be pretty popular so I’m hoping it will be on for a while. How would you like me living here in the same city again?”

Blaine and Kurt were both looking at each other in shock. Cooper was going to be starring in a TV show and he would be living in New York. The smile that slowly started on Blaine’s face was adorable and huge. He grabbed Cooper in a crushing hug and burst into happy tears. “I would love to have you here with me! I’ve missed you so much and I’m so glad that we’ve gotten so close this year. You can even stay here while you look for a place to stay, right Kurt?”

“Of course you can Coop! I’m **so** happy for you. Did you need any help looking for an apartment because it can take a while here in the city unless you were planning somewhere a little farther away?” The whole time that Kurt was talking he was waving his hands and his ring had caught Cooper’s attention. He quickly grabbed Kurt’s hand and then looked at Blaine with raised eyebrows then a huge smile when Blaine shyly lifted his hand to show the matching ring on his ring-finger as well.

“Something you neglected to tell me little brother?”

Moving to Kurt’s side and putting his arm around his waist, Blaine smiled and said, “Um, yeah… About that… Kurt and I proposed to each other last night. We had both planned to do it our first night here and both got a surprise when we saw the rings because we didn’t mention them to each other or anything. We’re just engaged right now and don’t plan to do anything more until we are both graduated from college.”

Cooper let out a loud whoop of joy and grabbed his brother in a huge hug while swinging him around like a toddler. He put him down just as quickly after remembering Blaine’s reaction to this in the past and how many times he’d had to change clothes because he always forgot. “I am so happy for you guys! I knew it was coming sometime soon, but this is fantastic! Have mom and dad been keeping up payments to you because you guys should have a nice little nest egg there to live on before your trust fund kicks in, Blainey.”

Kurt looks at the Anderson brothers curiously before asking, “Trust fund? You never mentioned that Blaine.”

Blaine looked at Cooper and asked a similar question, “What are you talking about Coop? I thought you were the only one that got anything from grandfather’s estate and you never really said if it was much or not so I just assumed that I didn’t get anything other than his pocket watch.”

At this point, Cooper was looking livid. “Do you mean to tell me that you were never told about your trust fund?” He continued after getting a confused negative from Blaine, “Well brother dear, you will be in for a very nice shock. By the way, how did you think that I was living in LA without a job for as long as I was? I flew back to see you every couple of months after you were hurt and even stayed here while you went through physical therapy. If I didn’t get much from the trust, how would I have lived in a city that is just as expensive as New York for eight years?”

Smiling shyly, Blaine just chuckled and said, “I guess I never really thought about it. I mean, I know mom and dad are loaded so I just thought that they might be helping you out some. So how well did we do?”

Winking at his brother and his future brother-in-law, he answered with a smirk, “Oh we did **really** well. You know that grandfather started the law firm that dad runs, but did you also know that he was a pretty successful inventor?”

Kurt looked interested and asked, “Really? What did he invent? Would I recognize any of them?”

Giving a smug wink to both boys, he replied, “You might have. He mostly made toys for dad and his brothers and sisters, but the first thing he invented with a friend when they were around nineteen was a little thing called the Zippo.” He paused for dramatic effect and wasn’t disappointed when he saw the astonished looks on their faces. He went on, “You might know a couple of the toys too. Mr. Potato Head and Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots?” He couldn’t contain himself any longer when he looked at the two men beside him and practically fell in the floor laughing. 

This broke Kurt out of his stunned silence and while glaring daggers at him, he asked, “Are you being completely serious or are you trying to fuck with us like you usually do, Cooper Anderson?”

Sobering slightly yet occasionally giggling at the look **still** on Blaine’s face, he answered, “Yes Kurt, I’m being serious. We don’t still get anything for any of his inventions because he sold the ideas to companies to be produced, but he did get money for the initial sale. Grandfather was a billionaire around the level of Warren Buffet, in fact they were friends.”

“Wait! Are you telling me that **Uncle Warren** that grandfather talked about all the time was **Warren Buffet**? How didn’t I know this?”

“Blaine, you were a little kid then. He died when you were eleven so you can’t expect to have known these things. He and dad hadn’t really gotten along for years at that point because grandfather didn’t like the way that dad was running the firm any more. He hated that dad made everything about money and corporate law, but dad was the worst! He acted like he was embarrassed instead of proud of his father. Why would he lower himself to make toys when he had a law firm to run? I’ll bet he didn’t have a problem while playing with the toys as a kid. I truly wish that grandfather had been our dad because he was all about family and he loved every one of us. We may not be a huge family, but he made sure we all knew we were loved while he was around and he also made sure we were all taken care of. All the kids got equal shares of his fortune and so did all of us grandkids. Twenty percent of his estate went to various charities and the rest went to us. His four children each got ten percent and we all got five percent. We get half when we turn twenty-five and the rest when we’re thirty-five. I’d also bet that from how he and mom spend, that they have probably gone through the majority of their share just in trips and parties to impress all of their country club friends.”

Watching his brother get more and more angry talking about their parents, Blaine went to Cooper and pulled him into a hug. “We don’t have to worry about them anymore, Coop. They are small-minded, selfish and greedy people who were never really there for anything other than financial support. Remember how we were always so jealous of all the cousins when we saw how the aunts and uncles fussed over them? They fuss over us too! Do you know how many graduation cards and calls and visits I got?” Blaine laughed while looking over his shoulder at Kurt and smiled. “Kurt was not prepared for six cousins, six aunts and uncles and all the assorted babies that came to see me. They weren’t able to get here for graduation, because some of the cousins were graduating too or still finishing up the school year so you missed them but they all came down together the week after to let everyone who would listen know how proud they were of me and teased me about Kurt and how cute we were as a couple. I didn’t know what to do and ended up bursting into tears in the middle of Yamato Steakhouse. I think I scared the shit out of Aunt Gloria and Uncle Tommy. They ran over and grabbed me into a big hug and started asking what was wrong and somehow everything spilled out about mom and dad. Do you know that they never even mentioned anything about our moving out and them basically disowning us? Everyone was furious. I was floored, to be honest. I had almost expected them to abandon us just like mom and dad but I should have known better.”

Hugging him back, Cooper smiled back at Blaine and says, “Yeah Bumble-Bee, you really should have. Everyone in our family is a better person than our parents. I wonder how many nasty calls mom and dad got after that dinner.” Laughing at the thought of several of his overly protective aunts getting a good head of steam into a rant about their favorite nephew was enough to get him over his previous bad mood. “Anyway, back to the trust. I’ll get you in touch with the trustee that I usually deal with and I’m sure he will fill you in on everything and since you’re of age now and in college, he will want to get a few signatures and probably get some school information because all educational expenses are covered even if you aren’t old enough to get a disbursement yet. I know that I got my tuition paid for which your scholarship takes care of but I also got an allowance for books and other supplies and things like that. Just get him in touch with your advisor and I’m sure that everything will get worked out pretty quickly. I also wouldn’t worry too much about being able to keep this place after graduation, which I’m sure you were since you won’t have The Bank of Mom and Dad to keep paying. You’ll have more than enough, even with only access to half of your trust fund.”

Kurt and Blaine shared another surprised look and then Kurt quietly asked Cooper, “How much are you talking about, Cooper? We’re paying about nine-thousand a month here with taxes and utilities plus the rent/mortgage on the condo. We were expecting to have to move pretty much right after graduation since we wouldn’t have the extra money from your parents, even with the savings we will have by then.”

Again, Cooper smirked and they knew he was enjoying tormenting them by drawing this out. They watched as he grabbed a small notebook and pen, wrote something and handed it to Blaine who quickly dropped it with his mouth hanging open in shock. Kurt leaned down to pick up the notebook just as Blaine burst out with, “There is no **fucking** way!”

The loud exclamation caused the remainder of the friends and family still in the apartment to come running to see what was wrong. As everyone burst into the music room, Kurt finally got a look at the notebook and noticed the figure written there. “Cooper Anderson, I know you aren’t trying to seriously tell us that Blaine has a trust fund worth four-hundred **million** dollars that no one bothered to tell him about!” This caused a loud disturbance in the crowd at the door as well but Cooper just sat back and smiled at everyone until Blaine finally had enough and shouted, “Everybody shut up!” Not expecting something like that to come from Blaine, it had its desired effect. Once the room was quiet again, he looked back to his brother who now reminded him of the Cheshire Cat with his lazy smile and said, “Explain this to me **now** , please. And everyone else please be quiet so that he can.” Everyone nodded and waited to hear what Cooper had to say.

“Well, I told you that grandfather was a billionaire. Between what he made as a lawyer and from the firm in general as CEO, he had the money from his inventions being sold and he had a good head for investing as well. He spent lots of money but most of it was for charities and things like that. He ended up creating several charities and funding scholarships as well as donating to many others for things like animals and the environment. But the one that he was the most proud of was one that he set up because of you Blaine. We all knew that you were gay from the time you were a little kid because you always talked about finding your very own prince when we watched Disney movies and lots of other little things like that. It didn’t bother anyone other than our asshole parents. It was just the way you were and everyone loved you so why bother being upset over something that you couldn’t change? He started a foundation to help fund scholarships and other ventures to help kids in the gay community. He knew that you wouldn’t have an easy time because of your sexuality so the foundation is to help with things like bullying, kids who are in bad situations with their families or without family but need support.”

Burt interrupted him with a question, “Wait, are you talking about the Devon Foundation?” At Cooper’s affirmative nod, he continued, “They back a lot of things that I work with in Congress trying to push through equality laws and stuff. They really do a lot of good things, but I had no idea that was something started by your family.”

Blaine’s face took on a light blush before he leaned closer into Cooper and started crying. “My grandfather always called me by my middle name, Devon, for some reason. He was always the first person to tell me what a good job I did on something or that he was proud of me. He even came to all of my plays and concerts when I was little. I can’t believe he did something like that for me though. That’s more than I would have ever expected. Cooper, how didn’t I know about any of this? I’m eighteen now, shouldn’t someone have told me that this amazing thing was started because of me?”

Cooper smiled sadly and shook his head, “I’m not surprised that mom and dad never mentioned it. They didn’t agree with him sinking so much money into something they absolutely hated. They thought it was unnecessary and encouraged young people to think that being gay was okay, like it was a choice. Grandfather almost cut them out of the will for that, but he didn’t because he knew that they would take it out on us. He just did what he always did and in the end, he left twenty percent of his estate to charity. I have a feeling that there will be something from him with the trustee when you go to talk about your trust fund. I think he might have put something in there about you working with the foundation.”

“Really? That would be amazing!” Looking back at Kurt again, they both smiled and with Kurt’s slight nod, he turned back to Cooper and shyly said, “Thank you for telling me about all of this. It really makes me sad that it was kept from me for so long, but this means that I can do something that I’ve wanted to do for a while now. Kurt and I were talking about the future and what we wanted to do. We both want to perform, but we know that it won’t be steady work for quite a while, if ever, and we both felt like we needed to do something to help kids like us. We’ve both been through so much in the past that has caused scars both mentally and physically and we wanted to do something to hopefully prevent this from happening to any more kids. We wanted to see if we could try and get “safe” community centers started that would have no bullying rules in place and host things like PFLAG meetings and stuff like that. If I’m going to have all of this money, I want to use it for good.”

Everyone was looking at Kurt and Blaine with amazement. It seems that no matter what the world threw at them, these two made the best out of a bad situation. Between the two men, no one had any doubt that their ideas would turn into more than they had ever expected because this was something they cared about and were determined to have work. Nothing would get in their way, and if it did, it wouldn’t be there for long. They can do anything they set their mind to as long as they are working on it together.  
 **  
**Epilogue  
 _New York, 6/10/2017 5:45 pm  
_ Tina was right about their wedding. Kurt and Blaine had planned the wedding of the decade and invitations were scarce and very difficult to come by. Both young men were well known for their work with The Devon Foundation and Kurt was quickly establishing his name as a forerunner in Broadway costume design after helping Rachel with a last minute costume emergency on opening night of Funny Girl. The wedding, while wildly elaborate and unique, was also quite small. The couple had decided early in the planning that they wanted only those closest to them to be present. Over the last few years, their tight-knit group had become even closer. There had been relationship problems, health scares and emotional break-ups that the friends always helped each other get through, but the biggest blow had come with the loss of one of their own. 

In July of 2014, Finn was driving Rachel and Santana back to Lima for a Glee Club reunion/Fourth of July barbeque when their car had been struck by a drunk driver. The girls were seriously injured, but Finn hadn’t made it through the accident. The loss of Finn hit everyone hard. He had been the brother that many in the club had never had and was always there to drag a smile out of whoever needed it the most. Kurt and Blaine seemed to take his death the hardest because they blamed themselves. They had a banquet to attend for The Devon Foundation the night that Finn wanted to leave, but had encouraged him to go on ahead with the girls and they would fly down the following day. It was a decision the two had regretted since it was made. They felt guilty that they hadn’t been with them or that they hadn’t asked everyone to the banquet and all flew in, but the decision had been made. There hadn’t been a funeral because Finn had decided the last time he had been to one that it was, “Depressing and wasn’t honoring the person who died, just showing how fancy a party the people left could throw.” Instead, they had a real party, one that included performances by members of New Directions, The Warblers and assorted friends and family along with as many tear-filled stories that could be fit into the time they were together. The night was ended with a huge bonfire at the lake to send Finn off with love and laughter. 

Blaine and Kurt had decided to do things as uniquely as always for their wedding. They were having a very non-traditional ceremony with a reception to follow and those in attendance would talk for years to come about how perfect it was for the couple and how it showed exactly who they were together by the elegant simplicity. Everyone was gathered in the ballroom of The Devon Foundation and watched as the pair traded vows with Wes presided over the ceremony.

“Welcome everyone to the wedding of Blaine and Kurt. I have known Blaine for many years now and met Kurt during a failed spying venture to Dalton Academy in his junior year of high school. These two have been to hell and back together and have come out a stronger and more loving couple than I have ever seen elsewhere. I am honored to be officiating for this ceremony and must ask this, even though I know the answer. Do you Blaine Devon Anderson and Kurt Elizabeth Hummel come together this day of your own free will and desire to be joined in matrimony?” 

After quick answers of, “We do.” Wes proceeded to bring out a brightly colored rope of red and green that was loosely wrapped around the couple’s hands. “This rope serves to remind us that as your hands are bound together, so now are your lives and souls joined in a union of love and trust. The stars above you are a constant light to guide you to each other while the earth below you is a foundation on which to build your lives together. Now we will hear your vows to one another.” Wes patted their hands and nodded to Kurt to begin.

Kurt quickly glanced at the guests before giving Blaine a brilliant smile, “Blaine Devon Anderson, you are everything I ever wanted but never knew. We met when I was so very lost and you helped me to find myself and the courage to live my life the way I wanted to instead of how others thought it should be. It may have taken a while for you to see it, but we have always been destined to be together. To save each other and guide each other through this maze called life. I know that we both have regrets about certain things, but loving you will never be one of them. You are amazing to me and show me each day how to be a better man and I will love you every day from now until the end of time. I am so lucky that we found each other and I never plan on letting you go. Thank you, my love, for saving my life and showing me how beautiful living it can be.” He raised their joined hands to his lips and kissed the back of Blaine’s before slipping a beautiful platinum band onto his ring finger to join the engagement ring.

After Wes’ nod that it was now his turn to speak, Blaine looked into the most amazing pair of eyes he knew and sniffed quietly before beginning, “Kurt Elizabeth Hummel, I know that I’ve made many mistakes in our relationship and I’m sure that we’ll both make more, but if we’re together, I know that we will make it through anything that life throws our way. I have never felt as happy as I do when I’m with you. It doesn’t matter what we’re doing or where we are, just being in your presence makes me feel a certain kind of joy in my heart that I never knew existed. You have saved my life and my sanity more times than I can count. You make me smile when no one else can. You make me cry happy tears over the smallest of things but then wipe them away and wrap me in your arms where I want to stay forever. You are the love of my life, my best friend and my soul mate and I couldn’t possibly begin to express how honored I am that you will be by my side for eternity.” 

By the time that Blaine was finished and had slipped Kurt’s ring on, there was not a dry eye in the room. Everyone in attendance knew the things these men had been through together and what an inspiration they were to all of them. They were the couple that everyone aspired to become because even when they fought, they still loved each other with a fierce passion that couldn’t be denied. No one ever had a doubt about their relationship. They would last until their dying day because of their love and commitment to each other.

Wes pronounced them husbands and told them to kiss, they did just that. Never a couple to shy from the spotlight, Kurt grabbed Blaine and pulled him flush against him and winked just as they crashed their lips together in a kiss full of passion and fun. The wolf-whistles and laughter filled the hall when Blaine, not to be outdone, wrapped his arms around Kurt and dipped him, still holding the kiss. They were both flushed and giggling when they finally parted. The ceremony concluded with Wes introducing the new couple and they all moved to the other side of the hall where the reception was set up. There was a small dance floor and tables to sit and chat or eat. The food was plentiful and varied in style but the drinks were flowing and by the time the speeches were due, everyone was pleasantly tipsy.

Cooper was the first to speak, as Blaine’s best-man. He was handsome as always and looked happier than anyone had seen him in years. “This is a day that I thought for a long time would never come. I was always so worried that Blaine wouldn’t find that someone special everyone talks about, but when I first saw him with Kurt, I knew then that wasn’t going to be the case. The thing that convinced me immediately of how good he was for my brother was the fact that even though he was a little star struck, he never lost sight of Blaine. I’m not sure if he even realized it, but even when he was laughing at my stupid jokes or being a little bit of a fanboy, he always glanced back at Blaine. He convinced Blaine to come and talk to me and was eventually the one who got our relationship back to where it always should have been. My brother has been through a lot in his short life so far, and I have always worried about him and how he will make it through all the trials and tribulations that come with being a proud gay man in this harsh world, but knowing that he has Kurt with him on this journey makes those fears much less. Kurt, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for being the man you are and loving my brother the way you do. Bumble Bee, I love you more than anything in this world and I’m so happy for you. I won’t give you well wishes because they aren’t needed. You and Kurt were made for each other and I know that you will be by each other’s sides until you’re old and gray. I’m gonna say one last thing and I don’t want to upset anyone, but I feel it needs to be said. Kurt, I know that you’ve lost your brother and he is sorely missed by everyone who knew him, but I want you to know that you have a brother in me too. You’ve been family to me for much longer than when the ceremony earlier made it legal. I’m here if you need me for anything. And on that note, I wish you both the best wedding night ever and hand things over to Sam!” Cooper leaned over to hug both men before sitting back down.

Sam looked a little nervous, but gave a huge smile and began speaking, “I want to brag a little here because I was the one to get these two back together after their break-up. Well, I got them there sooner than they might have because we all know they would have ended up together. I had found out some pretty upsetting news about what had really happened with their break-up from Blaine and I called Kurt in New York. I made sure that he knew he needed to talk to him and hear what Blaine had to say. He came home that weekend and found out some pretty devastating things and helped Blaine come back from it all. Kurt was the strength Blaine needed to make it through some of the toughest times of his life and it brought them closer than they had ever been. These two men are my best friends and an inspiration to us all. Their lives have been harder than most people can imagine, but they spend the majority of their time helping others. I can’t begin to say how blessed I feel to have them in my life and how happy I am to see this day finally come. Everyone raise your glasses and give a well deserved toast to Klaine!”

The room erupted into cheers, hoots of loud laughter and applause. Both best men had said the exact thing most of them had been feeling. They were proud to know this loving couple and delighted that they were considered friends and family. The noise slowly quieted down when they all noticed Kurt stand with a glass in hand and a sad look to his groom before he began to speak.

“Blaine and I would like to thank you all for taking time from your busy lives to be here for us on this amazing day. We have worked hard to get here and can’t express how happy we are to have you all share it with us. I know we’re all looking forward to the amazing meal that is being served from our newest star chef, Mr. Trent Kirby, but I wanted to share a few words from someone who no longer could.” Blaine reached up and grabbed Kurt’s hand and squeezed it while giving him an encouraging smile. He knew this was hard for him, but also that it was something that was necessary to his husband so he was there to help him get through this speech. Sniffling and wiping away a stray tear, Kurt continued, “Most of you knew my brother. He wasn’t a real brother by blood, but he was a true brother in every other way possible. We got off to a rocky start, but once we worked out those problems, we were closer than any blood brothers could be. He was my biggest supporter and cheerleader as well as the first person to protect me from anything, even myself. He also, to quote him, shipped Klaine in a big way. 

“He knew what a bitch I can be and he was usually the one to talk me back to reality after I’d worked myself into a real snit when Blaine and I fought. I’d like to share with you something that has brought me to tears and comfort over the years. The last message I got from Finn was just a few nights before he died and it was after Blaine and I had a horrible fight over something stupid about the benefit for Devon Foundation a few nights later. I had called him and we talked for hours until I was calmed down and saw how ridiculous I was being. He kept me on the phone until I fell asleep and when I woke up; this message was waiting for me.”

Kurt nodded to Artie who was working the DJ booth for the reception. He started a recording that once again brought everyone in the room to tears. “Bro, I know you and Blaine will be fine probably before you even get this message, but I wanted to say this just so you can remember it. When you fight, which we all know that you do, remember how much you love each other and how hard you’ve both fought to be together. Both of you are worth every bit of work you put into your relationship. You know me, I'm not the most observant guy in the world, but even I can see you two were meant to be together. Just… Try to remember what brought you together in the first place and figure out if what you're fighting about was more important than that. If it's not, just do what you have to and fix things like you always do. I love you guys and you have what I hope that I do one day. Take care of each other and I’ll see you soon.” Kurt was crying openly now while still clutching Blaine’s hand for dear life. He quickly dried his tears and made a final comment, “This is what I have to remember him by and it was Finn at his best. He wasn’t the brightest penny in the pile, but he had more heart than anyone I know. That short message summed up our relationship perfectly and it means so much to me that he saw what we do that I felt the need to share it with you all. Now I’m gonna shut up so we can all eat!”

 

The evening was beautiful and was filled with laughter and tears, but most of all love. At the end of the night, the two grooms held each other tight while dancing to their last dance of the evening and kissed each other while enjoying soft conversation about the wedding, reception and their future. When they finally parted, they thanked everyone for sharing their happiness and left for their final night at home for a month. They were spending a month travelling around Europe and ending with a quick few days in the Caribbean. When they were finally cuddled together in their comfy bed, they smiled, kissed and teased each other about who loved the other more. Just before falling into a blissful sleep, Blaine looked into his husband’s beautiful eyes and smiled before sleepily saying, “Thank you for being in my life and for listening to Sam when he called you. You’ve made me the happiest man in the world by working through things and finally letting me call you my husband forever and always.”

 

Kurt stared at his love with misty eyes and leaned over to press a soft kiss on his lips before replying, “I love you more than anything in this world and I think I knew before Sam called that I would end up back in your arms. He just got me there sooner than my stubborn ass would have done on my own.”

 

Giggling, Blaine answered with a kiss to Kurt’s nose, “I think that ass is magnificent but I’m glad that you got a little push. I love you forever and always.”

 

“I love you to the moon and back.”

 

Blaine started giggling again and in a falsely deep voice, “To infinity and beyond!”

 

Kurt laughed loudly before poking Blaine in the ribs and cuddling back into his side, “Go to sleep silly man. We start our honeymoon in the morning.”

 

“Okay. I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you.”

 

“I can’t either. Let’s get to sleep because the sooner we do, the sooner we’ll wake up and can get started on that.” Feeling Blaine’s arms wrap around him was the perfect ending to a perfect day.

**Author's Note:**

> Just a few last things to add, if anyone is interested. I took a little liberty with a few things like Wade/Unique being in the same year as Blaine because I honestly thought he was until we started seeing him with the sophomores. We saw him in season 4 so I thought he would be at least a junior. 
> 
> Last thing is for anyone interested in seeing the apartment or other things mentioned here. I have a polyvore page that has pics of the rings, apartment building and floor plans for the condo. There are a few other things mentioned as well and it can be found here: http://www.polyvore.com/perfect_imperfections/set?id=86327120


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